Page:Revised Codes of the State of North Dakota 1895.pdf/1464

§§ 8177-8181 word "refused," and all instructions asked for by either party shall be given or refused by the court without modification or change, unless modified or changed by the consent of the counsel asking the same.

§ 8177. Same. All instructions given to the jury must be read to them by the court without disclosing to them whether such instructions were requested or not, and must be signed by the judge and may be delivered to the jury, and be taken by them in their retirement and returned into court with the verdict. But when oral instructions are given the jury shall not take any part of the charge in their retirement unless so ordered by the court.

§ 8178. Instructions. Stenographer. Exceptions. Upon the close of the trial all instructions given or refused together with those prepared by the court, if any, must be filed with the clerk, and except as otherwise provided in the next section shall be deemed excepted to by the defendant. If the charge of the court, or any part thereof is given orally, the same must be taken down by the official stenographer and shall be deemed excepted to by the defendant, and the same as soon as may be after the trial must be written out at length and filed with the clerk of the court by the stenographer thereof; provided, that in case the defendant is acquitted by the jury the oral instructions need not be transcribed or filed with the clerk. But exceptions in writing to any of the instructions the court in any manner given, or the refusal of the court to give instructions requested, may be filed by the defendant at his discretion, with the clerk of the court within twenty days after the instructions are all filed as herein provided. The stenographer of the court shall receive for writing out the oral instructions of the court the same fees as for making transcripts.

§ 8179. Charge. Exceptions before given. The court may in its discretion, submit the written instructions which it proposes to give to the jury, to the counsel in the case for examination, and require such counsel after a reasonable examination thereof, to designate such parts thereof as he may cleem objectionable, and such counsel must thereupon designate such parts of such instructions as he may deem improper and thereafter only such parts of said written instructions so designated shall be deemed excepted to, or subject to exception.

§ 8180. Order specified may be changed. When the state of the pleadings requires it, or in any other case, for good reasons and in the sound discretion of the court, the order of trial and argument prescribed in section 8175 may be departed from.

§ 8181. Court to decide law. The court must decide all questions of law which arise in the course of the trial.

§ 8182. Libel. Jury determine law and fact. On the trial of an information or indictment for libel, the jury have the right to determine the law and the fact.

§ 8183. Other offenses. Determine only facts. On the trial of an information or indictment for any other offense than libel, questions of law are to be decided by the court, and, although the jury have the power to find a general verdict, which includes questions of law as well as of fact, they are bound, nevertheless, to receive as law what is laid down as such by the court.

§ 8184. Counsel. Argument restricted. If the information or indictment is for an offense punishable with death, three counsel on each side may argue the case to the jury. If it is any other offense

1430