A PROPOSITION

No. 69.

Introduced by Mr. Coker of Pinal County.

A Proposition Relative to Judiciary Department.

It is hereby proposed:

Section 1. The Senate shall have the sole power to try impeachments. The penalty upon conviction shall be limited to removal from office, but the officer impeached, before or after his impeachment, may be punished for any crime against the law.

Section 2. All elective State officers including justices of supreme court, and excluding members of the legislature, may be impeached. Any public officer not subject to impeachment may be otherwise removed from office in manner provided by law. A concurrence of two-thirds of all senators shall be necessary to a conviction in any case of impeachment.

Section 3. The legislature may prescribe rules and regulations to govern the institution and trial or impeachments; and if it shall neglect to prescribe such rules and regulations, the court of impeachment shall make such rules and regulations.

Section 4. As a court of impeachment the senators shall be on oath or affirmation. The chief justice shall preside, unless he shall be impeached, in which case the governor shall designate an associate justice of the supreme court, who shall preside.

Section 5. The supreme court shall consist of a chief justice and two associate justices. The number of associate justices may be enlarged by law to four. The chief justice shall be chosen in the State at large. The State shall be divided into as many districts as there are associate justices, and one such justice shall be chosen in each of such districts.

Section 6. All sessions of the supreme court shall be held at the capital. Two regular sessions shall be held every year, beginning on the first Mondays of May and November. Other sessions may be held at such times as the chief justice or a majority of the justices shall appoint.

Section 7. The justices of the supreme court shall reside at the capital while holding office. The jurisdiction of the court shall be coextensive with the State. Whatever power a justice of the court shall have may be exercised at any place in the State. The concurrence of a majority of the justices shall be necessary to a decision or final action in any matter.

Section 8. The supreme court shall have exclusive appellate jurisdiction in all causes and matters of whatever nature originating in the district or probate courts, and shall have such other appellate jurisdiction as may be provided by law; except it shall not have appellate jurisdiction of any cause or matter after the same has been determined upon appeal to any inferior court or tribunal.

Section 9. The supreme court shall have original jurisdiction in all cases of habeas corpus, mandamus, quo warranto, certiorari, prohibition, injunction, and other proceedings where such jurisdiction is conferred by law; and the several justices shall have authority to direct any proper process to issue in any such proceeding, making the same returnable to the court; but no such order shall be made or process issued unless directed to a district court or judge, when any district court or judge has been applied to therefor and failed to make, or refused the same; but the supreme court shall have full and exclusive authority to make and enforce all proper orders and issue process in any matter pending before it on appeal.

Section 10. There shall be a separate district court and judge in and for each county, and one or more additional district judges may be provided for by law in any county as necessity shall arise therefor.

Section 11. The district court shall be held and the judge thereof reside at the county seat. The jurisdiction of the court shall be coextensive with the county, but any act the judge may lawfully do at chambers or in vacation he may do at any place in the State. The regular terms of the court shall be held at such times as may be prescribed by law.

Section 12. Any judge of the district court may and shall hold court and perform all duties of district judge in any county other than that wherein he is chosen, when called for that purpose in manner provided by law.

Section 13. The district courts shall be courts of general original jurisdiction, with authority to hear all cases, both civil and criminal, except where exclusive original jurisdiction is expressly conferred by law upon some other court or tribunal.

Section 14. The district court shall have exclusive appellate jurisdiction in all causes and matters arising before and of which justices of the peace have original jurisdiction; and upon appeal such causes and matters shall be tried de novo, and the judgment of the district court shall be final therein. The district courts shall have such other appellate jurisdiction as may be given them by law.

Section 15. There shall be a separate probate court and judge in and for each county. One or more additional probate judges may be provided for by law if the necessity shall arise therefor. And the office of probate judge may be abolished in any county by law at any time, in which case the judge of the district court shall be ex-officio probate judge of the county and perform all the duties of such probate judge until the office shall be re-established by law.

Section 16. The probate court shall be held and the judge thereof reside at the county seat. The jurisdiction of the court shall be coextensive with the county, and the judge thereof may and shall hold court and perform all the duties of probate judge in any county other than that wherein he is chose, when called for that purpose in manner provided by law. There shall be no stated terms of the probate court held, and the court shall be open at all times for every purpose.

Section 17. The probate courts shall have exclusive original jurisdiction of all matters pertaining to the administration and settlement of the estates of decedents, and all matters pertaining to the persons and estates of minors, improvidents, lunatics, and persons of unsound mind. They shall have such other original jurisdiction concurrent with the district courts as may be given them by law; except they shall not have jurisdiction in any criminal case where the punishment may exceed a fine of five hundred dollars or imprisonment for six months or both such fine and imprisonment; nor shall they have jurisdiction to try any civil matter, other than in a probate proceeding, where the amount claimed or value in controversy, exclusive of interest and costs, exceeds one thousand dollars. They shall have no appellate jurisdiction in any case.

Section 18. There shall be one justice of the peace in and for every organized village and city, and one such justice in and for the territory of every county outside of the organized villages and cites. The mayor and council by ordinance may provide for additional justices of the peace in any organized city, and the board of supervisors or other controlling board of the county may provide by resolution for additional justices of the peace in and for the territory of the county lying outside of the organized villages and cities. Such additional justices of the peace may be so provided for and chosen at the first election held hereunder at which public officers are chosen or at any general election thereafter.

Section 19. The jurisdiction of every justice of the peace shall be co-extensive with the county, but he shall reside and hold his court in the village, city or district wherein he is chosen; and he may and shall hold court or try any cause at any place in the county when called for that purpose in manner provided by law.

Section 20. Justices of the peace shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the district court in all cases of misdemeanor where the punishment may not exceed a fine of two hundred dollars or imprisonment for sixty days, or both such fine and imprisonment; and, with the exceptions herein stated, they shall have like concurrent jurisdiction in all civil cases where the amount claimed or value in controversy, exclusive of interest and costs, does not exceed tow hundred dollars; and shall have like concurrent jurisdiction in all cases of forcible entry and detainer, or wrongful, unlawful or forcible detainer of real property; and they shall have such other powers as may be given them by law; and they shall have exclusive jurisdiction of all offenses against village and city ordinances; but they shall not have jurisdiction of any case on an official bond, or to recover from a public officer for neglect or misconduct in office, or to recover any tax or assessment, or to declare or foreclose any lien, or in any case where the determination of the title to or boundary of land is necessary to a final decision of the controversy.

Section 21. The supreme court shall from time to time prescribe rules consistent with law for its own government and for the government of the district and probate court, and justice of the peace, which rules shall be uniform in the respective courts throughout the state.

Section 22. The pleadings and proceedings in the courts shall be as provided by law; but no appeal shall ever be dismissed for informality, irregularity, or error in taking the same, if such informality, irregularity or error can by amendment or otherwise be corrected; and the appellate court shall have power and be charged with the duty to cause such corrections to be made; and no cause shall every be reversed for error where upon the whole case it shall appear that substantial justice has been done.

• Proposition Number 69 - Judiciary Department (introduced on 1910-10-20 14:00:00 - CREATE - e934530) [This document] [view current proposal at this moment]
  • None (introduced on 1910-10-20 14:00:00 - REPORT_PROPOSAL - e934532) [view current proposal at this moment]
  • None (introduced on 1910-10-20 14:00:00 - DEBATE_PROPOSAL - e934537) [view current proposal at this moment]