Return of jurors.
By W. 2. (13 E. 1.) c. 38. In one assise no more shall be summoned than four and twenty; and old men, above three score and ten years, being continually sick, or being diseased at the time of the summons, or not dwelling in that county, shall not be put in juries or petty assises. Nor shall any be put in assises or juries though they ought to be taken in their own county who have less tenement than to the value of twenty shillings by the year. And if such assises and juries ought to be taken out of the county, none shall be put in them who hath less tenement than to the value of forty shillings by the year, those except who are witnesses in charters or other writings whose presence is necessary, so long as they are able to travel. Nor ought this statute to be extended to great assises in which sometimes it behoveth to put knights not resident in the county by reason of the scarcity of knights, so long as they have tenement in the county.
By 21 E. 1. st. 1. no sheriff, &c. stewards or bailiffs of liberties shall put in any recognisances of juries, inquests, assises, and attaints, out of their proper counties to be made, any of their bailiwicks,[41] unless he have lands or tenements to the value of a hundred shillings by the year at least.
By the Articuli super chartas, 28 E. 1. c. 9. no sheriff nor bailiff shall put in inquests nor in juries more people or others, or in other manner than is ordained by statute and shall put in such inquests and juries the most near, most sufficient and least suspicious.
By 42 E. 3. c. 11. as to the return or answer of bailiffs of franchises they shall make their answer to the sheriffs six days before their session upon the pain of 20l. And in all manner of panels arrayed by sheriffs, or bailiffs within franchise, shall be put the most sufficient and worthy of faith and not suspected who have the best knowledge of the truth and [are] the most near.
By 11 H. 4. c. 9. no indictment shall be made but by inquest of the Kings lawful liege people returned by the sheriffs or bailiffs of franchises, without any denomination to the said sheriffs or bailiffs of franchises before made by any person of the names which by him should be impanelled, except it be by the officers of the said sheriffs or bailiffs sworn and known to make the same.[42]
By 2 H. 5. st. 1. c. 8. bailiffs of franchises shall cause to be impanelled sufficient persons [who have lands, &c. to the 'value' of 10l. a year, to inquire of riots before the Kings commissioners] upon pain to lose to the King 40l. in case such sufficient persons may be found within the same franchises.
By 2 H. 5. st. 2. c. 3. no person shall be admitted to pass in any inquest upon trial of the death of a man, nor in any inquest betwixt party and party in plea real nor in plea personal, whereof the debt or the damage declared amounts to 40 marks, if the same person have not lands or tenements of the yearly value of 40s. above the reprises thereof.
By 6 H. 6. c. 2. bailiffs of franchises shall make their returns or answer to the sheriffs in special assizes [i. e. as to panels between demandant and tenant] eight days before the session, upon pain of 40l.
By 8 H. 6. c. 9. when the justices or justice [of the peace] make enquiries [of forcible entries], they shall make their warrants and precepts to the sheriff of the county, commanding him on the Kings behalf to cause to come before them sufficient and indifferent persons dwelling about the lands entered, to enquire of such entries, of whom every one who shall be impanelled to enquire in this behalf shall have land or tenement of the annual value of 40s. at least above reprises. And that the sheriff return issues upon every of them at the day of the first precept returnable 20s. and at the second day 40s. and at the third time 100s. and at every day after double. And if any sheriff or bailiff within a franchise having return of the Kings writ be slack and make not execution duly of the said precepts to him directed to make such enquiries, he shall forfeit to the King 20l. for every default and moreover shall make fine and ransom to the King.