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this matter has in effect been twice de-
bated. I feel that the facts of the matter
have been substantially presented and per-
haps re-argued to this Committee of the
Whole.
I do make the final observation that our
Committee has brought to you the best we
can do with a difficult article. We have so
far enjoyed the support of the majority of
the delegates here. We feel that the recom-
mendation herein contained to leave to the
legislature the manner of the selection of
the clerk of the court in the county with
the multitude of duties is the efficient way
to handle this phase of our Recommenda-
tion to the Committee of the Whole.
We accordingly ask you to vote against
the proposed amendment and in that way
sustain the Majority Report which comes
to you, I respectfully suggest, with the
presumption of representing the majority
view of our Committee which has given
undue time to this matter.
May I release the rest of the controlled
time?
THE CHAIRMAN: Any other delegate
desire to speak?
Delegate Singer.
DELEGATE SINGER: I have a ques-
tion of Delegate Dulany.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Dulany,
will you yield to the question?
DELEGATE DULANY: Yes.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Singer.
DELEGATE SINGER: If your amend-
ment is adopted for a suggestion as to a
non-judicial clerk is carried through and
his functions are delineated by law, should
not the functions or duties of the judicial
clerk also be set forth by law to be con-
sistent?
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Dulany.
DELEGATE DULANY: I believe that
the judicial administrative duties of the
clerk should be as prescribed by rule be-
cause I think they are operating under the
judges who appoint them. They are part
of the judicial system. It may be that there
should be some additional functions that
would be assigned to them by law. I do not
think this would prevent their being as-
signed some functions by law. It says they
perform duties prescribed by rule but they
still perform duties prescribed by law.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Singer.
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DELEGATE SINGER: They could per-
form duties assigned by law in addition to
those assigned to them by court?
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Dulany.
DELEGATE DULANY: That would be
my interpretation.
THE CHAIRMAN: Any other delegate
desire to speak in opposition? Delegate
Marion, do you desire to speak in opposi-
tion?
Delegate Hutchinson, do you desire to
speak in opposition?
DELEGATE HUTCHINSON: Yes, sir.
THE CHAIRMAN: You may proceed.
DELEGATE HUTCHINSON: I would
like to relate the story of the clerk of Bal-
timore County. His name is 0. T. Gosnell.
He has served for twenty-five years in
the clerk's office of Baltimore County and
after the clerk that preceded him was taken
out of office for going against the public
trust, Mr. Gosnell was appointed chief clerk
in the circuit court. Then Mr. Gosnell was
elected by the people in 1966 who passed
judgment upon him and said in effect that
the circuit court judge had made the right
decision. But they too wanted to make the
right decision and they elected him to serve
as clerk to the court of Baltimore County.
Approximately fifteen minutes ago I
spoke to him on the phone. I asked him
what he thought about the appointment or
election of the clerk. He said, "You know,
chances are I would probably have a better
chance of being re-appointed in 1970 than
I would have of being re-elected in 1970."
He said, however, since the clerks at this
time must be subservient to the people and
the courts are servants to the people and
that today we have taken so much away
from the people in relation to the courts,
he thinks he should be elected.
I agree with him, I think we have taken
so much away from the people when it
comes to the courts in this state that they
must be able to touch something. What is
more of a servant to the people than the
courts of this state?
They must pass judgment upon them and
we have taken everything away from the
people and I think we should let them touch
something, and I think the clerk must be
that something.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Needle.
DELEGATE NEEDLE: Mr. Chairman,
I think the only justification for electing
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