18 UNION COUNTY PAST AND PRESENT
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may be formed into a judicial district, Union County is in the fa
Fifth Judicial District composed also of Henderson and Webster qt
A Counties. The courts in these counties are presided over by the tu
same judge and all have the services of the same Commonwealth S1
attorney. al
The Union Circuit Court convenes at Morganfield on the first in
Monday in February, the third Monday in March, the fourth tz
. Monday in May, the first Monday in September, the third Mon- _ P;
day in October, and the third Monday in November and continues tg
in session each time for twelve juridical days if business before di
the court so requires. Its jurisdiction includes cases arising out
of land titles, liens on land, personal actions involving more than a
$50, and in criminal actions in which the fine upon conviction U
exceeds $20. The circuit court has appellate jurisdiction in civil q
cases when the amount involved exceeds $25, must hear appeals C,
from county court judgment for over $50, and may hear appeals C
from justices’ courts involving forcible entry and detainer pro- C
ceedings. The circuit court has power to postpone judgments 3
A and place persons charged with crime on probation; to license t,
newspapers; to appoint special guards for prisoners when neces- (
sary; to request a detail of State troops to preserve peace; to O
order commitments; to pronounce the death sentence upon con- i,
viction of felony where the penalty prescribed by law is death; t
to sell lands of dissolved religious or charitable organizations.
The circuit judgeship is an elective office with tenure of six C
e years. The circuit judge is the presiding officer of his court and 5
a conservator of the peace for his judicial district. He may call (
the grand jury into session whenever he deems its service neces- t
sary to restore or insure the public peace; and he may convene E
special and extra sessions of the circuit court. (
A Commonwealth attorney is elected every six years in the ¤
Fifth Judicial District, election being contemporaneous with <
that of the circuit judge. It is the duty of the Commonwealth l
attorney, under the law, to attend each session of the circuit 4
court of his district; to prosecute all violations of the criminal
law of the State occurring in his district; to attend at the trial _
of all civil cases in the circuit court of his district to which the ,
State is a party or in which it is interested directly, though for —
the trial of such cases the governor may appoint special counsel
to work in collaboration with the Commonwealth attorney; to
_ advise the State revenue department in regard to delinquent of-