University of Virginia Library

Judiciary Asks
Constitutional
Alterations

By NEILL ALFORD III

The Judiciary Committee announced
recommendations Wednesday for changes
in the Judiciary Constitution.

The proposed changes, to be voted on
in the upcoming student election, would,
according to the committee's
announcement, "remove some archaic
language" and "insure that all trials on
appeal will be fair."

Favoring the eligibility of a student to
be elected from the same school to the
Judiciary Committee for more than one
term, the committee recommended that
the present restriction of serving only one
term be deleted from the constitutional
article on Membership.

"The committee felt," committee
member Brian Siegel said, "that there
were many capable and interested people
who will be prohibited from serving for
more than one term under the present
rule."

Residency Requirement

The old membership requirement of a
minimum term of residence at the
University, which has since been revised,
formerly made it impossible for a student
to be eligible for committee membership
for long, Mr. Siegel explained.

Affirming the right of any person to
introduce evidence which would reopen a
case, the committee proposed a change to
that effect in the article on Procedures.

The recommended revisions include a
proposal to delete the provision that "any
student or faculty member may show
good cause for reopening a case."

Word Change

In the article on Procedures, the
committee recommended scrapping the
phrase "ungentlemanly or unladylike
conduct and conduct bringing discredit
upon the University" in favor of the word
"misconduct."

"Several members of the committee
felt that use of the words 'ungentlemanly'
and 'unladylike' drew a distinction
between the sexes," committee member
Brian Siegel said.

"They felt that using simply the word
'conduct' would tend to blend the
apparent distinction. The Judiciary
Committee makes no actual distinctions
regarding sex in any matters brought
before it," Mr. Siegel said.