USA > Ohio > The biographical annals of Ohio, 1904-1905. A handbook of the government and institutions of the state of Ohio Vol. 2, Pt. 1 > Part 9
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SEC. 5. The right of trial by jury shall be inviolate.
SEC. 6. There shall be no slavery in this state, nor involuntary servitude, unless for the punishment of crime.
SEC. 7. All men have a natural and indefeasible right to worship Almighty God according to the dictates of their own conscience. No person shall be compelled to attend, erect. or support any place of worship, or maintain any form of worship, against his consent ; and no preference shall be given, by law, to any religious society ; nor shall any interference with the rights of conscience be permitted. No religious test shall be required, as a qualification for office, nor shall any person be incompe- tent to be a witness on account of his religious belief ; but nothing herein shall be construed to dispense with oaths and affirmations. Religion, morality, and knowledge, however, being essential to good government,
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it shall be the duty of the General Assembly to pass suitable laws to protect every religious denomination in the peaceable enjoyment of its own mode of public worship, and to encourage schools, and the means of instruction.
SEC. 8. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless, in cases of rebellion or invasion, the public safety require it.
.SEC. 9. All persons shall be bailable by sufficient sureties, except for capital offenses where the proof is evident, or the presumption great. Excessive bail shall not be required; nor excessive fines imposed; nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.
SEC. 10. Except in cases of impeachment, and cases arising in the army and navy, or in the milia when in actual service in time of war or public danger, and in cases of petit larceny and other inferior offenses, no person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on presentment or indictment of a grand jury. In any trial, in any court, the party accused shall be allowed to appear and defend in person, and with counsel; to demand the nature and cause of the accusa- tion against him, and to have a copy thereof ; to meet the witnesses face to face, and to have compulsory process to procure the attendance of witnesses in his behalf, and a speedy public trial by an impartial jury of the county or district, in which the offense is alleged to have been com- mitted; nor shall any person be compelled, in any criminal case, to be a witness against himself, or be twice put in jeopardy for the same offense.
. SEC. II. Every citizen may freely speak, write, and publish his sentiments on all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of the right; and no law shall be passed to restrain or abridge the liberty of speech, or of the press. In all criminal prosecutions for libel the truth may be given in evidence to the jury, and if it shall appear to the jury, that the matter as charged as libelous is true, and was published with good motives, and for justifiable ends, the party shall be acquitted.
SEC. 12. No person shall be transported out of the state, for any offense committed within the same; and no conviction shall work corrup- tion of blood, or forfeiture of estate.
SEC. 13. No soldier shall, in time. of peace, be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner; nor, in time of war, except in the manner prescribed by law.
SEC. 14. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, `papers, and possessions, against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated; and no warrant shall issue, but upon probable cause, sup- ported by oath or affirmation, particularly describing the place to be searched and the person and things to be seized.
SEC. 15. No person shall be imprisoned for debt in any civil action, on mesne or final. process, unless in cases of fraud.
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SEC. 16. All courts shall be open, and every person, for an injury done him in his land, goods, person, or reputation, shall have remedy by due course of law ; and justice administered without denial or delay.
SEC. 17. No hereditary emoluments, honors, or privileges, shall ever be granted or conferred by this state.
SEC. 18. No power of suspending laws shall ever be exercised, except by the General Assembly.
SEC. 19. Private property shall ever be held inviolate, but sub- servient to the public welfare. When taken in time of war, or other public exigency, imperatively requiring its immediate seizure or for the purpose of making or repairing roads, which shall be open to the public, without charge, a compensation shall be made to the owner, in money, and in all other cases, where private property shall be taken for public use, a compensation therefor shall first be made in money, or first secured by a deposit of money, and such compensation shall be assessed by a jury, without deduction for benefits to any property of the owner.
SEC. 20. This enumeration of rights shall not be construed to impair or deny others retained by the people; and all powers, not herein delegated, remain with the people.
ARTICLE II. LEGISLATIVE.
"SEC. I. The legislative power of this state shall be vested in a General Assembly, which shall consist of a Senate, and House of Representatives.
SEC. 2. Senators and representatives shall be elected biennially by the electors of the respective counties or districts, on the first Tues- day after the first Monday in November; their term of office shall com- mence on the first day of January next thereafter, and continue two years. [As amended October 13, 1885, 82 v. 446.]
SEC. 3. Senators and representatives shall have resided in their respective counties, or districts, one year next preceding their election, unless they shall have been absent on the public business of the United States, or of this state.
SEC. 4. No person holding office under the authority of the United States, or any lucrative office under the authority of this state, shall be eligible to, or have a seat in, the General Assembly; but this provision shall not extend to township officers, justices of the peace, notaries · public, or officers of the militia.
SEC. 5. No person hereafter convicted of an embezzlement of the public funds, shall hold any office in this state; nor shall any person,
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holding public money for disbursement, or otherwise, have a seat in the General Assembly, until he shall have accounted for, and paid such money into the treasury.
SEC. 6. Each house shall be judge of the election, returns, and qualifications of its own members ; a majority of all the members elected to each house shall be a quorum to do business; but a less number may adjourn from day to day, and compel the attendance of absent members, in such manner, and under such penalties, as shall be pre- scribed by law.
SEC. 7. The mode of organizing the house of representatives, at the commencement of each regular session, shall be prescribed by la ...
SEC. 8. Each house, except as otherwise provided in this con- stitution, shall choose its own officers, may determine its own rules of proceeding, punish its members for disorderly conduct; and, with the concurrence of two-thirds, expel a member, but not the second time for the same cause; and shall have all other powers, necessary to pro- vide for its safety, and the undisturbed transaction of its business.
SEC. 9. Each house shall keep a correct journal of its proceed- . ings, which shall be published. At the desire of any two members, the yeas and nays shall be entered upon the journal; and, on the passage of every bill, in either house, the vote shall be taken by yeas and nays, and entered upon the journal; and no law shall be passed in either house without the concurrence of a majority of all the members elected thereto.
SEC. 10. Any member of either house shall have the right to protest against any act, or resolution thereof; and such protest, and the reasons therefor, shall, without alteration, commitment, or delay, be entered upon the journal.
SEC. II. All vacancies which may happen in either house shall, for the unexpired term, be filled by election, as shall be directed by law.
SEC. 12. Senators and Representatives, during the session of the General Assembly, and in going to and returning from the same, shall be privileged from arrest, in all cases, except treason, felony, or breach of the peace; and for any speech, or debate, in either house, they shall not be questioned elsewhere.
SEC. 13. The proceedings of both houses shall be public, except in cases which, in the opinion of two-thirds of those present, require secrecy.
SEC. 14. Neither house shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than two days, Sundays excluded; nor to any other place than that, in which the two houses shall be in session.
SEC. 15. Bills may originate in either house; but may be altered, amended, or rejected in the other.
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SEC. 16. Every bill shall be fully and distinctly read three different days, unless in case of urgency three-fourths of the house in which it shall be pending, shall dispense with the rule. No bill shall contain more than one subject, which shall be clearly expressed in its title, and no law shall be revived or amended unless the new act contain the entire act revived, or the section or sections amended, and the section or sections so amended shall be repealed.
Every bill passed by both houses of the General Assembly shall, before said bill can become law, be presented to the governor. If he approves he shall sign said bill and thereupon said bill shall be law. If he object he shall not sign and shall' return said bill, together with is objection thereto in writing, to the house wherei said biff originated, which house shall enter at large upon its journal said objection and shall proceed to reconsider said bill. If, after said reconsideration, at least two-thirds of the members-elect of that house vote to repass said bill it shall be sent, together with said objection, to the other house, which shall enter at large upon its' journal said objection and shall proceed to to reconsider said bill. If, after said reconsideration, at least two-thirds of the members-elect of that house vote to pass said bill it shall be law, otherwise it shall not be law. The votes for the repassage of said bill shall in each house respectively be no less than those given on the original passage. If any bill passed by both houses of the General Assembly and presented to the governor is not signed and is not returned to the house wherein it originated and within ten days after being so presented, exclusive of Sunday and the day said bill was presented, said bill shall be law as in like manner as if signed, unless final adjournment of the General Assembly prevents such return, n which case. shall be law, unless objected to by the Governor and filed, together with is objection thereto in writing, by him in the office of the Secretary of State within the prescribed ten days; and the Secretary of State shall at once make public said fact and shall return said bill, together with said objection, upon the opening of the next following session of the · General Assembly, to the house wherein said bill originated, where it shall be treated in like manner as if returned within the prescribed ten days. .
If any bill passed by both houses of the General Assembly and pre- sented to the Governor contains two or more sections, or two or more items of appropriation of money, he may object to one or more of said sections or to one or more of said items of appropriation oof mney, and approve the other portion f said bill, in which case said approved portion may be signed and then shall be law; and such section or sections, item or items of appropriation of money objected to shall be returned within the time and in the manner prescribed for, and shall be separately reconsidered as in the case of, a whole bill; but if final adjournment of
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the General Assembly prevents such return the Governor shall file said section or sections, item or items of appropriation of money, together with his objection thereto in writing, with the Secretary of State as in the case of a whole bill, and the Secretary of State shall then make public said fact but shall not further act as in the case of a whole bill. [As amended November, 1903.]
SEC. 17. The presiding officer of each house shall sign, publicly in the presence of the house over which he presides, while the same is in session and capable of transacting business all bills and joint reso- lutions passed by the General Assembly.
SEC. 18. The style of the laws of this state shall be, "B. it created by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio."
SEC. 19. No Senator or Representative shall, during the term for which he shall have been elected, or for one year thereafter, be appointed to any civil office under this state, which shall be created or the emoluments of which shall have been increased, during the term for which he shall have been elected.
SEC. 20. The General Assembly, in cases not provided for in this constitution, shall fix the term of office and the compensation of all officers ; but no change therein shall affect the salary of any officer during his existing term, unless the office be abolished.
SEC. 21. The General Assembly shall determine, by law, before what authority, and in what manner, the trial of contested elections shall 1 be conducted.
SEC. 22. No money shall be drawn from the treasury, except in pursuance of a specific appropriation, made by law ; and no appropriation shall be made for a longer period than two years.
SEC. 23. The House of Representatives shall have the sole power of impeachment, but a majority of the members elected must concur . therein. Impeachments shall be tried by the Senate; and the senators, when sitting for that purpose, shall be upon oath or affirmation to do justice according to law and evidence. No person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the senators.
· SEC. 24. The governor, judges, and all state officers, may be impeached for any misdemeanor in office ; but judgment 'shall not extend further than the removal from office, and disqualification to hold any office, under the authority of this state. The party impeached, whether convicted or not, shall be liable to indictment, trial and judgment, accord- ing to law.
SEC. 25. All regular sessions of the General Assembly shall com- mence on the first Monday of January, biennially. The first session. under this constitution, shall commence on the first Monday of January, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two.
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SEC. 26. All laws, of a general nature, shall have a uniform opera- tion throughout the state; nor, shall any act, except such as relates to public schools, be passed, to take effect upon the approval of any other authority than the General Assembly, except, as otherwise provided in this constitution.
SEC. 27. The election and appointment of all officers, and the filling of all vacancies, not otherwise provided for by this constitution, or the constitution of the United States, shall be made in such manner as may be directed by law; but no appointing power shall be exercised by the General Assembly, except as prescribed in this constiution, and in the election of the United States senators; and in these cases the vote shall be taken "viva voce."
SEC. 28. The General Assembly shall have no power to pass retroactive laws, or laws impairing the obligation of contracts; but may, by general laws, authorize courts to carry into effect, upon such terms as shall be just and equitable, the manifest intention of parties, and offi- cers, by curing omissions, defects, and errors, in instruments and pro- ceedings, arising out of their want of conformity with the laws of this state.
SEC. 29. No extra compensation shall be made to any officer, pub- lic agent, or contractor, after the service shall have been rendered, or the contract entered into; nor shall any money be paid, on any claim, the subject matter of which shall not have been provided for by pre-existing law, unless such compensation, or claim, be allowed by two-thirds of the members elected to each branch of the General Assembly.
SEC. 30. No new county shall contain less than four hundred square miles of territory, nor shall any county be reduced below that amount ; and all laws creating new countles, changing county lines, or removing county seats, shall, before taking effect, be submitted to the electors of the several counties to be affected thereby, at the next general election after the passage thereof, and be adopted by a majority of all the electors voting at such election, in each of said counties: but any county now or hereafter containing one hundred thousand inhabi- tants, may be divided, whenever a majority of the voters residing in cach of the proposed divisions shall approve of the law passed for that purpose ; but no town or city within the same shall be divided, nor shall either of the divisions contain less than twenty thousand inhabitants. . SEC. 31. The members and officers of the General Assembly shall receive a fixed compensation, to be prescribed by law, and no other allowance or perquisites, either in the payment of postage or otherwise ; and no change in their . compensation shall take effect during their term of office.
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SEC. 32. The General Assembly shall grant no divorce, nor exercise any judicial power not herein expressly conferred.
ARTICLE III.
EXECUTIVE.
SEC. I. The executive department shall consist of a governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor of state, treasurer of state, and an attorney-general, who shall be elected on the first Tuesday ; after the first Monday in November, by the electors of the state, and at the places of voting for members of the General Assembly. [Ac amended October 13, 1885; 82 v. 446.]
SEC. 2. The governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, treasurer, and attorney-general shall hold their offices for two years ; . and the auditor for four years. Their term of office shall commence on the second Monday of January next after their election, and continue until their successors are elected and qualified.
SEC. 3. The returns for every election for the officers named in the foregoing election shall be sealed up and transmitted to the seat of gov- ernment, by the returning officers, directed to the president of the senate, who, during the first week of the session, shall open and publish them, and declare the result, in the presence of a majority of the members of each house of the General Assembly. The person having the highest number of votes shall be declared duly elected; but if any two or more shall be highest. and equal in votes, for the same office, one of them shall be chosen by the joint vote of both houses.
SEC. 4. Should there be no session of the General Assembly in January next after an election for any of the officers aforesaid, the returns of such election shall be made to the secretary of state, and opened, and the result declared by the governor, in such manner as may be provided by law.
SEC. 5. The supreme executive power of this state shall be vested in the governor.
SEC. 6. He may require information, in writing, from the officers in the executive department, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices, and shall see that the laws are faithfully executed.
SEC. 7.' He shall communicate at every session, by message, to the General Assembly, the condition of the state, and recommend such measures as he shall deem expedient.
SEC. 8. He may, on extraordinary occasions, convene the General Assembly by proclamation, and shall state to 'both houses, when assem- bled, the purpose for which they have been convened.
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SEC. 9. In case of a disagreement between the two houses, in respect to the time of adjournment, he shall have power to adjourn the General Assembly to such time as he may think proper, but not beyond the regular meetings thereof.
SEC. 10. He shall be commander-in-chief of the military and naval forces of the state, except when they shall be called into the service of the United States.
SEC. II. He shall have power, after conviction, to grant reprieves, commutations, and pardons, for all crimes and offenses, except treason and cases of impeachment, upon such conditions as he may think proper ; subject, however, to such regulations, as to the manner of for applying pardons, as may be prescribed by law. Upon conviction for treason, he may suspend the execution of the sentence, and report the case to the General Assembly, at its next meeting, when the General Assembly shall cither pardon, commute the sentence, direct its execution, or grant a further reprieve. He shall communicate to the General Assembly, at every regular session each case of reprieve, commutation, or pardon granted, stating the name and crime of convict, the sentence, its date, and the date of the communtation, pardon, or reprieve, with his reason therefor.
SEC. 12. There shall be a seal of the state, which shall be kept by the governor, and used by him officially; and shall be called "The Great Seal of the State of Ohio."
SEC. 13. All grants and commissions shall be issued in the name, and by the authority, of the state of Ohio; sealed with the great seal; signed by the governor, and countersigned by the secretary of state.
SEC. 14. No member of Congress, or other person holding office under the authority of this state, or of the United States, shall execute the office of governor, except as herein provided.
SEC. 15. In case of the death, impeachment, resignation, removal, or other disability of the governor, the powers and duties of the office, for the residue of the term, or until he shall be acquitted, or the disability removed, shall devolve upon the lieutenant governor.
· SEC. 16. The lieutenant governor shall be president of the senate, but shall vote only when the senate is equally divided; and in case of his absence, or impeachment, or when he shall exercise the office of governor, the senate shall choose a president pro tempore.
SEC. 17. If the lieutenant governor, while executing the office of governor, shall be impeached, displaced, resign or die, or otherwise become incapable of performing the duties of the office, the president of the senate shall act as governor until the vacancy is filled, or the dis- ability removed; and if the president of the senate, for any of the above
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causes, shall be rendered incapable of performing the duties pertaining to the office of governor, the same shall devolve upon the speaker of the house of representatives.
SEC. 18. Should the office of auditor, treasurer, secretary, or attor- ney-general, become vacant, for any of the causes specified in the fifteenth section of this article, the governor shall fill the vacancy until the disability is removed, or a successor elected and qualified. Every such vacancy shall be fielled by election, at the first general election that occurs more than thirty days after it shall have happened; and the person chosen shall hold the office for the full term fixed in the second section of this article.
SEC. 19. The officers mentioned in this article shall, at stated times, receive for their services, a compensation to be established by law, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the period for which they shall have been elected.
SEC. 20. The officers of the executive department, and of the public state institutions shall, at least five days preceding each regular session of the General Assembly, severally report to the governor, who shall transmit such reports, with his message, to the General Assembly.
ARTICLE IV.
.. JUDICIAL.
SEC. I. The judicial power of the state is vested in a supreme court, circuit courts, courts of common pleas, courts of probate, justices of the peace, and such other courts inferior to the supreme court, as the General Assembly may, fro mtime to time establish. [As amended General Assembly may, from time to time establish. [As amended October 9, 1883, (vol. 80, p. 382).]
SEC. 2. The supreme court shall, until otherwise provided by law, consist of five judges, a majority of whom competent to sit shall be necessary to form a quorum or to pronounce a decision, except as hereinafter provided. It shall have original jurisdiction in quo war- ranto, mandamus, habeas corpus and procedendo, and such appellate jurisdiction as may be provided by law. It shall hold at least one term in each year at the seat of government, and such other terms, there or elsewhere, as may be provided by law. The judges of the supreme court shall be elected by the electors of the state at large, for such term. not less than five years, as the General Assembly may prescribe, and they shall be elected and their official term shall begin at such time as may be fixed by law. In case the General Assembly shall increase the number of such judges, the first term of each of such additional judges shall be such, that in each year after their first election, an equal num-
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