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34-540: Hanover County Courthouse is a historic courthouse located in the community of Hanover Courthouse , the county seat of Hanover County, Virginia . Built about 1735, it is one of the nation's oldest courthouses still in use for that purpose. It is historically notable as the site of the Parson's Cause case, which was argued by Patrick Henry in 1763. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1973. A modern courthouse complex stands nearby, which now houses most of

68-584: A Senate with 50 members and a House of Representatives with 203 members, making it the second-largest state legislature in the nation, behind New Hampshire , and the largest full-time legislature. Senators are elected for a term of four years. Representatives are elected for a term of two years. The Pennsylvania general elections are held on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November in even-numbered years. A vacant seat must be filled by special election,

102-605: A United States post office as well as court facilities for the District of New Jersey . Some branches of U.S. federal government courts are housed in rented office space in buildings housing commercial tenants; for instance, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware is located in an office building in Wilmington, Delaware , across the street from the main courthouse of

136-531: A completely different continent. These characteristics include the materiality in terms of large stone construction, the repetitive rhythmic use of windows containing various sized arches and barrel vaults directing attention towards them, decorated spandrels (wall section connecting arches) and the inclusion of gabled walls (pointed sections). Old City Hall has been designated a National Historical Site since 1989. Pennsylvania General Assembly Minority Minority The Pennsylvania General Assembly

170-600: A federally owned building that houses courtrooms, chambers and clerk's offices. Many federal judicial districts are further split into divisions, which may also have their own courthouses. However, sometimes divisional court facilities are located in buildings that also house other agencies or offices of the United States government; for instance, the Mitchell H. Cohen United States Courthouse in Camden, New Jersey houses

204-513: A tall hipped roof with modillioned cornice, and three chimneys. It is laid out in a T shape, with the courtroom in the rear-projecting leg of the T, the judge's quarters on the left side, and a jury room on the right. The front of the building is distinguished by an arcade of rounded arches. Hanover County was created in 1720 by the Colony of Virginia . The courthouse was built about 1735, supposedly by William Meriwether, who also built and operated

238-483: Is commonly used in the English-speaking countries of North America. In most other English-speaking countries, buildings which house courts of law are simply called "courts" or "court buildings". In most of continental Europe and former non-English-speaking European colonies, the equivalent term is a palace of justice (French: palais de justice, Italian: palazzo di giustizia, Portuguese: palácio da justiça). In

272-703: Is equivalent to the city hall as the symbol of the municipium in European free cities . Courthouses are often shown in American cinema (i.e. " Peyton Place ", " Back to the Future ", and " My Cousin Vinny "). They range from small-town rural buildings with a few rooms to huge metropolitan courthouses that occupy large plots of land. The style of American architecture used varies, with common styles including federal , Greek Revival , neoclassicist , and modern . Due to

306-801: Is the legislature of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania . The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg . In colonial times (1682–1776), the legislature was known as the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly and was unicameral . Since the Constitution of 1776 , the legislature has been known as the General Assembly. The General Assembly became a bicameral legislature in 1791. The General Assembly has 253 members, consisting of

340-552: The House of Burgesses . Henry, representing the county, accused the King of tyranny in overturning colonial law without regard to the wishes of his subjects. A new modern government complex with two court buildings was built and opened in 1979 adjacent to the 1735 courthouse, which is still actively used for periodic judicial proceedings to alleviate crowded court dockets and also for handling ceremonial events Courthouse The term

374-594: The Oklahoma City bombing , the federal government proceeded to heavily fortify all large federal buildings, including many urban courthouses. Some courthouses in areas with high levels of violent crime have redundant layers of security. For example, when the Supreme Court of California hears oral argument in San Francisco or Los Angeles, visitors must pass through one security checkpoint to enter

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408-466: The United States , most counties maintain trial courts in a county-based courthouse, which also house other county government offices. The courthouse may be a part of a wider county government building or complex. The courthouse is usually located in the county seat , although large metropolitan counties may have satellite or annex offices for their courts. In some cases, the building housing

442-463: The 19th century, the culture of corruption in the General Assembly got so bad that from 1866 to 1873, about 8,700 of 9,300 acts passed in that timeframe were local or special acts. The frustration of the people of the Commonwealth with its legislature finally boiled over in 1871 and resulted in a 1873 constitutional convention and a 1874 constitutional amendment. One of the amendment's reforms

476-743: The Los Angeles Superior Court added such checkpoints to all entrances to its main courthouse in Downtown Los Angeles after a woman was shot and killed by her ex-husband in open court in September 1995. The Supreme Court of California ruled in 2002 that Los Angeles County (which at the time was responsible for maintaining the courthouses) was not liable to her three children under the California Government Tort Claims Act. After

510-660: The building, and another to enter the courtroom. In Canada , each municipality constructs its own courthouse, or several in the case of large cities. In smaller communities the court is in the same building as the city hall and other municipal offices. In the past many courthouses also included the local prison. One well-known court house in Canada is the Romanesque Revival (Neo-Romanesque) Old City Hall in Toronto , Ontario . Designed by E.J. Lennox , Old City Hall

544-543: The committee, is appointed by the other four and may not be an elected or appointed official. If the leadership cannot decide on a fifth member, the State Supreme Court may appoint him or her. While in office, legislators may not hold civil office. Even if a member resigns, the Constitution states that the legislator may not be appointed to civil office for the duration of the term to which the legislator

578-485: The consent of both chambers. The Pennsylvania General Assembly has a lengthy history as one of the most openly corrupt state legislatures in the United States, going back over two centuries to the era of the Thirteen Colonies . In 1794, while visiting western Pennsylvania , Alexander Hamilton wrote to Rufus King : "The political putrefaction of Pennsylvania is greater than I had any idea of". During

612-696: The consent of the other. The governor may call a special session in order to press for legislation on important issues. As of 2017, only 35 special sessions have been called in the history of Pennsylvania. The Assembly meets in the Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg , which was completed in 1906. Under the Pennsylvania Constitution , the Assembly must meet in the City of Harrisburg and can move only if given

646-532: The county's judicial functions. The Hanover County Courthouse is located in the center of the small community formally called Hanover Courthouse (but is more colloquially known just as "Hanover"). It is set on a grassy quadrangle on the north side of United States Route 301 , with other 18th-century buildings nearby that make up the Hanover County Courthouse Historic District . It is a single-story brick building, with

680-427: The courthouse also contains the main administrative office for the county government, or when a new courthouse is constructed, the former one will often be used for other local government offices. Either way, a typical courthouse will have one or more courtrooms and a court clerk's office with a filing window where litigants may submit documents for filing with the court. Each United States district court also has

714-621: The courthouse may be named in some way or its function divided as between a judicial building and administrative office building. Philadelphia City Hall , for instance, serves as the seat of the legislative and executive functions of the consolidated city and county of Philadelphia , but most of its floor space is devoted to the Civil Division of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas . The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania shares space with three local governments and with

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748-413: The date of which is set by the presiding officer of the respective house. Senators must be at least 25 years old, and Representatives at least 21 years old. They must be citizens and residents of the state for a minimum of four years and reside in their districts for at least one year. Individuals who have been convicted of felonies, including embezzlement, bribery, and perjury, are ineligible for election;

782-528: The district court. The United States District Court for the Eastern District of California has a courthouse in Yosemite to hear misdemeanors and petty crimes for Yosemite National Park . Most of the United States courts of appeals are based in the main courthouses of the federal district court in the city in which they are seated. The courthouse is part of the iconography of American life and

816-440: The footprint of the building. Secure entrance vestibules provide court staff the opportunity to screen visitors to the building for contraband, such as weapons and narcotics, as well as for unauthorized access. Mid size to larger courthouses often have separate entrances to the building for the public, prisoners, judges, and witnesses. These entrances may be monitored remotely from a central security station. In lower risk settings,

850-937: The legislative and executive branches of the state government of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia City Hall in Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg , which it shares with the Pennsylvania General Assembly and the Governor of Pennsylvania , and the Pittsburgh City-County Building in Pittsburgh , which it shares with the governments of the City of Pittsburgh and of Allegheny County . Many judges also officiate at civil marriage ceremonies in their courthouse chambers. In some places,

884-465: The modalities involved in the hearing of complex cases, including civil, criminal, and family law disputes, the architecture of court buildings can present significant security challenges to enforcement officers. Architects typically use two main tools to mitigate security risks within the adjudicative space depending upon local needs, such as the proliferation of weapons: secure entrance vestibules and separation of circulation pathways and adjacencies within

918-602: The necessary exception. This is why Pennsylvania remains the only U.S. state that has not yet completed a comprehensive codification of its general statutory law. Since 1970, Pennsylvania has been undertaking its first official codification process, resulting in the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes . With over 300 years of uncodified statutes to go through, the codification process is still not yet complete after over five decades of work. President Pro Tempore : Kim Ward (R) Speaker of

952-419: The only place the systems of circulation, including hallways, stairwells, and elevators overlap is within the monitored setting of the courtroom. This reduces the risk of unauthorized access to court materials by the public, such as court clerk record vaults, as well as the risk of in-custody defendants intimidating witnesses or jurors while being escorted through the public areas of the courthouse. For example,

986-487: The original Hanover Tavern, just across the main road. Its design was apparently based on the courthouse of King William County to the southeast. In 1763, Patrick Henry , who lived and practiced law in Hanover County, argued the case of the Parson's Cause , involving King George III's veto of local legislation changing tax rates for the support of local Anglican ministry despite their objections and those of

1020-654: The security screening may be more perfunctory and serve as an information desk to direct visitors to the various agencies and offices housed within the court building. Once users of the court have entered the building through security screenings and access control checkpoints, the circulation systems of passageways through the building provide discrete pathways by which the public, court staff, and in-custody defendants access to courtrooms and other court services, such as attorneys, pretrial and probation services, and clerks' offices. The circulation pathways and adjacency diagrams designed for newer and larger courthouses often ensure that

1054-456: The state Constitution also adds the category of "other infamous crimes," which can be broadly interpreted by state courts. No one who has been previously expelled from the General Assembly may be elected. Legislative districts are drawn every ten years, following the U.S. Census . They are drawn by a five-member commission, of which four members are the majority and minority leaders of each house (or their delegates). The fifth member, who chairs

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1088-640: Was completed in 1899 and has been functioning as a municipal building ever since. It was originally constructed to facilitate Toronto's City Council, legal and municipal offices and the city's courts however following the construction of the fourth city hall (adjacent to the third, on Queen Street) the building's purpose was limited to being solely a courthouse for the Ontario Court of Justice . The building can be described as Romanesque Revival due to multiple characteristics it shares with Romanesque architecture, despite being constructed seven centuries later in

1122-544: Was elected. The General Assembly is a continuing body within the term for which its representatives are elected. It convenes at 12 o'clock noon on the first Tuesday of January each year and then meets regularly throughout the year. Both houses adjourn on November 30 in even-numbered years, when the terms of all members of the House and half the members of the Senate expire. Neither body can adjourn for more than three days without

1156-487: Was to prohibit the General Assembly from writing statutes covering more than one subject . Unfortunately, the amendment (today found at Section 3 of Article III of the Pennsylvania Constitution) was so poorly written that it also prevented the General Assembly from undertaking a comprehensive codification of the Commonwealth's statutes until another amendment was pushed through in 1967 to provide

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