Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1966 )

RNEY GENERAL
EXAS
Honorable :q.C. Lindsey Opinion No. C-642
Criminal District Attorney
Jefferson County Re: Proper lists for the
Beaumont, Texas selection of qualified
jurors s
Dear Mr. Lindsey:
Your request for an opinion on the above-captioned
subject reads, in part, as follows:
"Article 2094, V.A.C.SWt which relates to
the selection of names for the jury wheel
states, in part, that various county officials
shall meet in August each year "and select
from the list of qualified jurors of such
coun,tyas shown by the tax lists in the tax
assessorus office for the current year, the
jurors for service in the district and county
courts for the ensuing year." in the manner
thereinafter provided. [Emphasis added.)
"Heretofore, the county officials of
Jefferson County used for their selection
of na'mesthe ad valorem tax rolls and the
poll tax rolls as found in the tax assessor's
office, Now that we no longer have a 'poll
tax" in Texas to go on the 'tax list' in the
tax assessor's office, the county officials
have requested our office to ask your opinion
on the following questions:
"What constitutes the 'tax lists" as
that term is used in Article 2094, V.A.C.S.?
"Which lists may the county officials
now use in the selecting of names of qualified
jurors?"
^
Hon. W. C. Lindsey, page 2 (C-642)
A further question which we have been asked from other
sources and which is implied by your second question is whether
the names of persons registering under the provisions of Section
34b of the Texas Election Code, enacted by Section 7 of~senate
Bill No. 1, Acts of the 59th Legislature, 1st C,S. 1966, may pro-
perly be put into the jury wheel,
These questions are an outgrowth of the recent federal
district court decision in United States of America v. The State
of Texas, (W,D.Tex., Feb, 9, 1966, opinion not yet reported:
appeal to U,S.Sup,Ct. pending)I invalidating the requirement for
payment of the poll tax as a prerequisite for voting. Following
the decision, the Legislature was convened in special session
for the purpose of enacting a voter registration law, and its
product was embodied in Senate Bill No, 1, supra, Section 34b
of the Election Code, enacted by Section 7 of S.B, No. 1, opened
up a 15-day registration period from March 3, 1966, through
March 17, 1966, for persons subject to the poll.tax who had
not paid it before February P, 1966, but who are in other respects
qualified electors. Registrants were issued "conditional voter
registration certificatesqafor the 1966 voting year, which were
to become effective for voting upon either of two stated con-
tingencies, one of which was that an order of the Supreme Court
or the district court having jurisdica,tionof United States v.
State of Texas, supra, U'becomeseffective to enjoin the enforce-
ment of the invalidated provisions at ePections kefd before
February 1, 1967."
The United States Supreme Court refused to stay the
district court judgment pending appeal, but the district court
granted a stay through March 25, 1966, in order to allow completion
of registration and compilation of registration lists under the
new law before Its judgment was put into effect. As of March 26,
11966,new registrants meeting other valid requirements of Texas
law became eligible to vote at elections held during the remainder
of the 1966 voting year, and the eligibiEty will be revoked only
in the event the Supreme Court reverses the district court decision.
Sections 1 through 5 of S-B, No, 1 contain permanent
provisions for registration of voters, not based on liability for
or payment of the poll tax0 which wili go into effect upon af-
firmance of the district court decision or upon adoption of a
proposed amendment to ,theTexas Constitution repealing payment
of the poll tax as a prerequisite for voting,
. ,
Hon. W. C. Lindsey, page 3 (C-642)
Of immediate concern is whether the names of persons
issued conditional voter registration certificates under Section
34b of the Election Code may be placed into the jury wheel this
year. Of concern in future years is whether the na'mesof per-
sons registered as voters under the permanent provisions of
S.B, No. P may be placed into the wheel.
Article 2094, Vernon"s Civil Statutes, provides that
the names to be placed in the jury wheel are to be selected
"from the list of qualified jurors of the county as shown by
the tax lists in the tax assessor's office for the current year."
Article 2095 provides that the officers performing this duty
"shall write the names of all persons who are known to be quali-
fied jurors under the law, residing in their respective counties,
on separate cards" etc.
Article 2133, Vernonas Civil Statutes, provides as one
of the qualifications of a juror that a person “must be a citizen
of the State and of the County in which he is to serve, and
qualified under the Constitution and laws to vote in said County:
provided, that his failure to pay poll tax as required by law
shall not be held to disqualify him for jury service in any in-
stance." This provision doubtlessly is a partial basis for use
of the poll tax lists [officially referred to as the lists of
qualified voters, consisting of the names of persons who have
paid the poll tax or obtained exemption certificates. See Art.
5,22, Texas Election Code), Article 2133 further provides as a
qualification of a juror that he "mdst be either a freeholder
in the State of Texas or a householder in the County or wife of
a householder in the County." Use of the ad valoram tax lists
in making up the jury wheel cards is related to this qualification.
The question of what lists should properly be classified
as "tax iists" urder Article 2094 was fully considered in Attorney
General"s Opinion No, O-5521 j19431, After tracing the history
of the jury wheel Yaw, the opinion stated:
"Construing these Paws in accordance with the
above referred to rule of construction, we do not
believe that it was the intent, purpose wr effect
of the jury wheel law to render unavailable for
jury service in those counties which came under
such law, any man in such counties who had the
-3ir5
. .
Hon. W. C. Lindsey, page 4 (C-642)
qualifications of a juror prescribed in said
Article 2133, et seq. In construing that por-
tion of Article 2094 (as amended) which pro-
vides that the names used for filling the
jury wheel are obtained 'from the tax lists
in the Tax Assessor*s office fox the current
year, ' together with that provision in Article
2095 (as amended), which provides that the
designated officers "shall write the names of
all men who are known to be qualified jurors
under the law,' on cards which shall be placed
in the wheel, we are inevitably led to the
conclusion that it was the purpose and intent
of the Legislature in enacting the jury wheel
law to (ai preserve the availability as jurors
of all men in the county qualified for jury
service under the general law; (b) to abolish,
in counties coming under the provisions of
the jury wheel Yaw, the element of discretion
involved in the selection, by jury commis-
sioners, of the individual jurors to make up
jury panels, and to utiliee instead the selec-
tion of jury panels by mechanical means; ‘and
(c$ to sanction by law the use of the tax
lists in the tax assessor's office for the
current year as an aid to the designated
officers in their performance of their duty
to see that the names of a11 those known to
be qualified jurors under the Yaw find their
way into the jury wheel. We think the law
contemplates that the designated officers
should be diligent in their efforts to collect
and place in the jury wheel the names of aTL
men in the county having the qualifications
of jurors as prescribed by the statutes of
Texas I And axways the controlring object to
be effected is the placing in the jury wheel
of all the qualified jurors in the county,
"From what we have said above, you wiP1
understand that our answer to your question
No, 1 is that the list in the tax assessor's
Hon. W. C. Lindsey, page 5 (C-642)
office, which should properly be classified as
a tax list within the meaning of the jury wheel
law, is the rendition list: but this list is
to be used in aid of the designated officers
in a diligent effort on their part to see that
the names of all qualified jurors in the county
find their way into the jury wheel. In further-
ance of this effort, it is permissible for said
officers to refer to and check the poll tax
list for the current year against the rendition
list: but it would be error for the officers
to use said poll tax list as the exclusive
source from which the names to be placed in
the jury wheel would be obtained."
Article 2133 expressly provides that failure to pay
the poll tax does not disqualify a person for jury service.
Registrants under Section 34b of the Election Code presumably
meet all other qualifications for voting, and their names, if
known to the officers making up the cards for the jury wheel,
could be put into the wheel when new cards are prepared in August
of 1966, without their having registered as voters. Even if
their eligibility to vote is revoked by reversal of the district
court decision, their names may still properly be QUt into and
remain in the wheel until a new set of cards is prepared in
1967 * From what has been said, it also follows that names of
persons registering under the permanent provisions of S.B. No. 1
may also be placed into the wheel in future years.
S'IJMMARY
The tax lists referred to in Article 2094,
V.C.S., to be used in selecting names to be put
into the jury wheel, are the county tax assessor's
lists of property subject to taxation (the
rendered and unrendered property lists). How-
ever, these lists are not the exclusive source
from which the names should be obtained, and
the officers preparing the cards for the jury
wheel should include the names of all persons
within the county whom they know to be quali-
fied for jury service, Names of voters who
registered under the provisions of Section 34b
Hon. W. C. Lindsey, Qage 6 (C-642)
of the Texas Election Code, enacted by Section
7 of Senate Bill No. 1, Acts 59th Leg., 1st C.S.,
1966, during the 15-day period vjhichended on
March 17, 1966, may properly be placed into the
jury wheel.
Very truly yours,
WAGGONER CARR
Attorney General
Mary K, Wall
Assistant
MKW:ra
APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE
W. V. Geppert, Chairman
John Reeves
Robert Flowers
John Banks
Phillip Crawford
APPROVED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
By: T, B. Wright