Florida Amendment 10, Escambia County Court System Amendment (1952)

Florida Amendment 10
Election date November 4, 1952
Topic County and municipal governance and State judiciary
Status Defeated
Type Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	Origin State legislature

Florida Amendment 10 was on the ballot as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment in Florida on November 4, 1952. It was defeated.

A “yes” vote supported revising the Escambia County court system.

A “no” vote opposed revising the Escambia County court system.

Election results

Florida Amendment 10
Result		Votes	Percentage
Yes		134,628	40.86%
No		194,841	59.14%

Results are officially certified.

Source

Text of measure

Ballot title

The ballot title for Amendment 10 was as follows:

“

No. 10 CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT ARTICLE V Proposing an amendment to Article V of the Constitution of the State of Florida by adding thereto an additional section to abolish the Court of Record in and for Escambia County, Florida, and vest all its jurisdiction in the Circuit Court of Escambia County, providing for an additional Judge of the Circuit Court of Escambia County, Florida, and for Prosecuting Attorneys in said Court and County, and for their appointment, compensation, and authority, providing for not less than six (6) terms of the Circuit Court of Escambia County in each year, and to provide for the appointment by the Circuit Count of Escambia County Commissioners of Said Court and for their duties, authority, and compensation.

”

Full Text

The full text of this measure is available here.

Constitutional changes

Section 50. (a) The Court of Record in and for Escambia County shall, from and after the taking effect of this amendment, be abolished and upon such abolition of said Court the Circuit Court of Escambia County, Florida, and the Judges thereof, in addition to their present jurisdiction, shall have in Escambia County jurisdiction of all criminal cases which shall arise in said County; (b) There shall be another Judge of the Circuit Court of Escambia County in addition to the Circuit Judges of the Circuit Court in which said county is situated. The Judge of the Court of Record in and for Escambia County holding office at the time of the taking effect of this amendment shall become such additional Circuit Judge and shall hold office until the time at which his term as Judge of the Court of Record in and for Escambia County expires. Thereafter such additional Judge of the Circuit Court of Escambia County shall be selected in the same manner as other Circuit Judges are selected, except that, if selected by election, he shall be selected by the qualified electors of Escambia County. He shall reside in Escambia County and he shall, within such county, have all the powers and perform all the duties that are or may be provided or prescribed by the Constitution or by statute, and all statutes concerning Circuit Judges shall apply to him. He shall hold office for six (6) years and shall receive the same salary and allowances for expenses as other Circuit Judges, in Escambia County, but the same shall be paid by the County of Escambia out of the general revenues of said county, unless and until the legislature provides otherwise by law. There shall be an additional official Court Reporter of the Circuit Court of Escambia County and the official Court Reporter of the Court of Record in and for Escambia County holding such position at the time of the taking effect of this amendment shall become such additional official Court Reporter of said Circuit Court and until and unless otherwise provided by law all statutes concerning the official Circuit Court Reporter shall apply to him. (c) After the First Tuesday after the First Monday in January, 1953, and until otherwise provided by law applicable only to Escambia County, the Solicitor of the Court of Record in and for Escambia County shall act as prosecuting attorney of the Circuit Court in and for Escambia County, Florida, for all criminal cases, including capital cases, and he shall be the State Attorney of Escambia County and there shall be no other prosecuting officer for said Circuit Court in Escambia County, and thereafter said State Attorney shall hold office until the time at which his term as Solicitor of the Court of Record in and for Escambia County expires. Thereafter such State Attorney shall be selected in the same manner and for the same term as the Solicitor of the Court of Record in and for Escambia County is now selected except that if selected by election he shall be selected by the qualified electors of Escambia County. He shall reside in Escambia County and he shall within such County have all the powers and perform all the duties that are or may hereafter be provided or prescribed by the Constitution or by statute, and until otherwise provided by law he shall be paid by the County of Escambia in the same manner and at the same rate of compensation as the Solicitor of the Court of Record in and for Escambia County is now paid and until otherwise provided by law he shall be allowed the same assistants and their compensation and the expenses of his office shall be as now or hereafter provided for by law. The State Attorney of the First Judicial Circuit shall have no jurisdiction in Escambia County, and shall not reside therein; he shall be selected in the same manner as State Attorneys of other Circuits are selected, by the qualified electors of the counties wherein he exercises jurisdiction, and shall be a resident thereof. (d) There shall be not less than six (6) terms of the Circuit Court of Escambia County in each year, to be held at such times as may be prescribed by the legislature. (e) In the exercise of its jurisdiction to try misdemeanors, the Circuit Court of Escambia County shall have the power to appoint one or more of the several Justices of the Peace of said County for their respective districts as Commissioner or Commissioners who shall have authority to try for the said Circuit Court and without a jury, upon waiver of jury trial as now provided by law, any person charged with a misdemeanor. All defendants so tried, or the State, shall have the right to a trial de novo by said Court or the Judge thereof upon written application filed in the office of the Clerk of said Court. The appointment of a Justice of the Peace as a Commissioner as aforesaid shall be made for such term and upon such conditions as said Circuit Court of Escambia County shall see fit to prescribe and any appointment so made may be summarily revoked by said Circuit Court for any cause whatever. If in the future the offices of Justices of the Peace in Escambia County shall be abolished then, in such event, the Circuit Court of Escambia County shall have the power to appoint not to exceed three (3) Commissioners from among the members of the Bar of Escambia County. After the appointment and qualification of a Commissioner or Commissioners of said Circuit Court, all warrants for the arrest of persons charged with a misdemeanor shall be made returnable before a Commissioner of said Court and, unless a preliminary hearing before a committing magistrate be requested by a person arrested pursuant to any such warrant, the trial shall be had before the Commissioner as soon after the arrest as may be expedient. The Circuit Court of Escambia County shall have the right to prescribe, by court rule, the procedure before such Commissioner and where a Commissioner may sit and the manner in which each of such Commissioners shall transmit his records and judgments to the Clerk of said Court. The compensation and allowances of such Commissioners shall be fixed by the legislature and shall be paid by Escambia County. The terms of office of such Commissioners shall be fixed by the legislature. (f) Upon the taking effect of this amendment the records of the Court of Record of Escambia County shall be delivered by the then Clerk of said Court to the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Escambia County who shall become the official custodian of the said records. (g) This Amendment shall take effect at ten o'clock A. M. on the day following the date of the adjournment sine die of the regular session of the Legislature of 1953, and upon its taking effect, jurisdiction of all matters and causes then pending in said Court of Record shall vest in the Circuit Court of Escambia County, with powers to dispose of the same.

Path to the ballot

See also: Amending the Florida Constitution

A 60% vote was required during one legislative session for the Florida State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounted to a minimum of 51 votes in the Florida House of Representatives and 18 votes in the Florida State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments did not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot. Amendments on the ballot required a simple majority vote in this year.

See also

1952 Measures

• 1952 Measures
• State judiciary on the ballot
• County and municipal governance on the ballot
• 1952 legislative sessions

Florida

• Florida ballot measures
• Florida ballot measure laws

News and analysis

• Ballot measure lawsuits
• Ballot measure readability
• Ballot measure polls

External links

• Florida Constitution Revision Commission, "Florida's Constitutions: The Documentary History"
• Sarasota Herald-Tribune, "SAMPLE BALLOT GENERAL ELECTION," November 4, 1952