science. for their benefit: and therefore they have at all times an una- dient. SEC. 3. No person within this state shall, upon any pretence, Rights of con- be deprived of the inestimable privilege of worshipping God in the manner most agreeable to his own conscience; nor be compelled to attend any place of worship; nor shall any one ever be obliged to pay any tithes, taxes, or other rate for the building or repairing any place of worship, or for the maintainance of any minister or ministry. Not to be interfered with. No person molested. Civil rights not affected by religious belief. No established religion or religious test. Freedom of speech, &c. Searches. nal cases. SEC. 4. No human authority ought in any case whatever, to control or interfere with the rights of conscience. SEC. 5. No person shall be hurt, molested or restrained, in his religious profession, sentiments or persuasions, provided he does not disturb others in their religious worship. SEC. 6. The civil rights, privileges, or capacities of any citizen shall in no way be diminished, or enlarged, on account of his religious principles. SEC. 7. There shall be no establishment of religion by law; no preference shall be ever given by law to any religious sect, society, denomination, or mode of worship; and no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under this state. SEC. S. Every citizen may freely speak, write, and publish his sentiments on all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of that liberty. SEC. 9. The people shall be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and possessions, from unreasonable seizures or searches; and no warrant to search any place, or to seize any person or thing, shall issue without describing them as nearly as may be, nor without probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation. Rights of acSEC. 10. In all criminal prosecutions, the accused has a right cused in crimi- to be heard by himself and counsel; to demand the nature and cause of the accusation, and have a copy thereof; to be confronted by the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor; and in all prosecutions, by indictment or information, a speedy public trial by an impartial jury of the county or district in which the offence shall have been committed: he shall not be compelled to give evidence against himself, nor shall he be deprived of his life, liberty or property, but by due course of law. No person accused, &c., except by law. Indictable offences how proceeded against. No person SEC. 11. No person shall be accused, arrested or detained, except in cases ascertained by law, and according to the forms which the same has prescribed; and no person shall be punished, but in virtue of a law, established and promulgated prior to the offence, and legally applied. SEC. 12. No person shall for any indictable offence, he proceeded against criminally, by information; except in cases arising in the land and naval forces, or the militia when in actual service, or by leave of the court, for oppression or misdemeanor in office. SEC. 13. No person shall, for the same offence, be twice put twice tried for in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall any person's property be taken or applied to public use, unless just compensation be made therefor. same offence. SEC. 14. All courts shall be open, and every person for an Courts to be injury done him, in his lands, goods, person, or reputation, shall open &c. have remedy by due course of law, and right and justice administered without sale, denial or delay. SEC. 15. No power of suspending laws shall be exercised, Laws not, susexcept by the general assembly, or its authority. pended but by general assem SEC. 16. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive bly. fines imposed, nor cruel punishments inflicted. Of bail and fines. SEC. 17. All persons shall, before conviction, be bailable by Bailable offensufficient securities, except for capital offences, when the proof ces. is evident, or the presumption great; and the privilege of the writ of "habeas corpus" shall not be suspended, unless when, in cases of rebellion, or invasion, the public safety may require it, SEC. 18. The person of a debtor, where there is not strong Debtors when presumption of fraud, shall not be detained in prison, after de- discharged. livering up his estate for the benefit of his creditors, in such manner as shall be prescribed by law. SEC. 19. No expost facto law, nor law impairing the obliga- No expost faction of contracts, shall be made. to laws. SEC. 20, No person shall be attainted of treason or felony by No attaints. the general assembly. No attainder shall work corruption of blood, nor forfeiture of estate. SEC. 21. The estates of suicides shall descend or vest as No forfeitures in cases of natural death; if any person shall be killed by casu- from suicides. alty, there shall be no forfeiture by reason thereof. SEC. 22. The citizens have a right, in a peaceable manner Assembly of cito assemble together for their common good, and to apply to tizens. those invested with the powers of government for redress of grievances, or other proper purposes, by petition address or re monstrance. SEC. 23. Every citizen has a right to bear arms in defence of May bear arms himself and the state. SEC. 24. No standing army shall be kept up without the con- Standing army, sent of the general assembly; and, in that case, no appropria- &c. tion of money for its support shall be for a longer term than one year; and the military shall, in all cases, and at all times, be in strict subordination to the civil power. Quartering SEC. 25. No soldier shall in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner; nor in time of war, troops. but in a manner to be prescribed by law. SEC. 26. No title of nobility, or hereditary distinction, privi- No titles of nolege, honor or emolument, shall ever be granted or conferred in bility. this state; nor shall any office be created, the appointment of which shall be for a longer term than during good behavior. SEC. 27. Emigration from this state shall not be prohibited, Emigration. nor shall any citizen be exiled. SEC. 28. The right of trial by jury shall remain inviolate. SEC. 29. No person shall be debarred from prosecuting or defending any civil cause, for or against him or herself, before any tribunal in this state, by him or herself, or counsel. Trial by jury. Right of prosecuting, &c. SEC. 30. This enumeration of certain rights shall not be Enumeration of construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people; rights. and to guard against any encroachments on the rights herein retained, or any transgression of any of the high powers herein delegated, we declare that every thing in this article is excepted out of the general powers of government, and shall forever remain inviolate; and that all laws contrary thereto, or to the following provisions, shall be void. ARTICLE II. Three distinct Distribution of Powers. SEC. 1. The powers of the government of the state of Aladepartments. bama shall be divided into three distinct departments: and each of them confided to a separate body of magistracy; to wit:those which are legislative to one; those which are executive to another; and those which are judicial to another. Persons be not to interfere SEC. 2. No person, or collection of persons, being of one of longing to one those departments, shall exercise any power properly belongwith the others ing to either of the others, except in the instances hereinafter expressly directed or permitted." ARTICLE III. Two branches. Legislative Department. SEC. 1. The legislative power of this state shall be vested in two distinct branches-the one to be styled the senate, the other the house of representatives, and both together, "The General Style of laws. Assembly of the state of Alabama; and the style of their laws shall be," Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Alabama, in General Assembly convened." Members, how chosen. Election when held. Qualification of members. Of electors. SEC. 2. The members of the house of representatives shall be chosen by the qualified electors, and shall serve for the term of one year, from the day of the commencement of the general election, and no longer. SEC. 3. The representatives shall be chosen every year, on the first Monday and the day following in August, until otherwise directed by law. SEC. 4. No person shall be a representative unless he be a white man, a citizen of the United States, and shall have been an inhabitant of this state two years next preceding his election, and the last year thereof a resident of the county, city, or town for which he shall be chosen, and shall have attained the age of twenty-one years. SEC. 5. Every white male person of the age of twenty-one years, or upwards, who shall be a citizen of the United States, and shall have resided in this state one year next preceding an election, and the last three months within the county, city or town, in which he offors to vote, shall be deemed a qualified elector; provided that no soldier, seaman, or marine, in the regular army or navy of the United States, shall be entitled to vote at any election in this state; and provided, also, that no elector shall be entitled to vote except in the county, city, or town (entitled to separate representation) in which he may reside at the time of the election. SEC. 6. Electors shall, in all cases, except in those of treason, Electors privifelony, or breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest dur- leges. ing their attendance at elections, and in going to and returning from the same. Elections by SEC. 7. In all elections by the people, the electors shall vote ballot. by ballot, until the general assembly shall otherwise direct. where held. re SEC. 8. Elections for representatives for the several counties Elections, shall be held at the place of holding their respective courts, and at such other places as may be prescribed by law; provided Separate that when it shall appear to the general assembly that any city or presentation of town shall have a number of white inhabitants equal to the ra- cities or towns. tio then fixed, such city or town shall have a separate representation, according to the number of white inhabitants therein; which shall be retained so long as such city or town shall contain a number of white inhabitants equal to the ratio which may from time to time be fixed by law; and thereafter, and during the existence of the right of separate representation, in such city or town, elections for the county in which such city or town (entitled to such separate representation) is situated, shall not be held in such city or town; but it is understood and hereby declared, that no city or town shall be entitled to separate representation, unless the number of white inhabitants in the county, in which such city or town is situated, residing out of the limits of said city or town, be equal to the existing ratio; or unless the residuum or fraction of such city or town shall, when added to the white inhabitants of the county residing out of the limits of said city or town, be equal to the ratio fixed how disposed by law for one representative; and provided, that, if the resi- of. duum or fraction of any city or town, entitled to separate representation, shall, when added to the residuum of the county in which it may lie, be equal to the ratio fixed by law for one representative, then the aforesaid county, city, or town, having the largest residuum, shall be entitled to such representation and provided also, that when there are two or more Proviso. counties adjoining, which have residuums or fractions over and above the ratio then fixed by law, if said residuums or fractions when added together, will amount to such ratio, in that case one representative shall be added to that county having the largest residuum. : Residuum, taken. SEC. 9. The general assembly shall, at their first meeting, Enumeration, and in the years one thousand eight hundred and twenty, when and how one thousand eight hundred and twenty-three, one thousand eight hundred and twenty-six, and every six years thereaf ter, cause an enumeration to be made of all the inhabitants of Apportionment the state, and the whole number of the representatives shall, of representa at the first session held after making every such enumeration, tion. be fixed by the general assembly, and apportioned among the several counties, cities, or towns, entitled to separate representation, according to their respective numbers of white inhabitants; and the said apportionment, when made, shall not be subject to alteration, until after the next census shall be taken. The house of representatives shall not consist of less than fortyfour, nor more than sixty members, until the number of white inhabitants shall be one hundred thousand; and after that event, the whole number of representatives shall never be less than sixty, nor more than one hundred; provided, however, that each county shall be entitled to at least one representative. General sembly. As Senators apportioned. Senatorial districts. Senators how chosen. SEC. 10. The general assembly shall, at the first session after making every such enumeration, fix by law the whole number of senators, and shall divide the state into the same number of districts, as nearly equal in the number of white inhabitants as may be, each of which districts shall be entitled to one senator and no more; provided, that the whole number of senators shall never be less than one-fourth, nor more than one-third of the whole number of representatives. SEC. 11. When a senatorial district shall be composed of two or more counties, the counties of which such district consists, shall not be entirely separated by any county belonging to another district; and no county shall be divided in forming a district. SEC. 12. Senators shall be chosen by the qualified electors, for the term of three years, at the same time, in the same manTerm of service ner, and at the same places, where they may vote for members of the house of representatives; and no person shall be a Qualifications. senator unless he be a white man, a citizen of the United States, and shall have been an inhabitant of this state two years next preceding his election, and the last year thereof a resident of the district for which he shall be chosen, and shall have attained to the age of twenty-seven years. Classification of senators. SEC. 13. The senators chosen according to the apportionment under the census ordered to be taken in one thousand eight hundred and twenty-six, when convened, shall be divided by lot into three classes, as nearly equal as may be. The seats of the senators of the first class shall be vacated at the expiration of the first year, those of the second class at the expiration of the second year, and those of the third class at the expiration of the third year, so that one-third may be annually chosen thereafter, and a rotation kept up perpetually. Such mode of classifying new additional senators shall be observed as will, as nearly as possible, preserve equality of members in each class. House of reSEC. 14. The house of representatives, when assembled, presentatives to choose a shall choose a speaker, and its other officers; and the senate speaker. shall, annually, choose a president, and its other officers; each house shall judge of the qualifications, elections, and returns of choose a presi- its own members: but a contested election shall be determined in such manner as shall be directed by law. Senate to dent. To judge &c. tions. SEC. 15. A majority of each house shall constitute a quorum to do business, but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and may compel the attendance of absent members in such manner, and under such penalties as each house may provide. SEC. 16. Each house may determine the rules of its own proceedings, punish members for disorderly behavior, and with the consent of two-thirds, expel a member; but not a second time for the same cause, and shall have all other powers necessary for a branch of the legislature of a free and independ ent state. SEC. 17. Each house during the session, may punish, by imprisonment, any person, not a member, for disrespectful or disorderly behavior in its presence, or for obstructing any of its proceedings provided that such imprisonment shall not, at any one time, exceed forty-eight hours. |