EVENTS IN BRIEF
[Under this heading will appear each month numerous paragraphs of general interest, relating to the prison field and the treatment of the delinquent.]
Adult Probation in Illinois.—Illinois has fallen into line by adopting an adult probation law. The measure went into effect on July 1. The law was drafted by a committee of the Civic Federation of Chicago, of which Prof. Charles R. Henderson was chairman. Since opposition had developed in previous sessions of the General Assembly to proposals for adult probation, it was deemed necessary to make the statute enacted this year very limited in its scope.
Another bill which passed and which was supported by the Civic Federation, was one increasing the number of state parole officers from 2 to 7. A general revision of the Illinois parole laws was contemplated by Prof. Henderson’s committee and bills were drafted with this in view, but owing to recent decisions of the Supreme Court, it seemed inadvisable to urge any such legislation at this session.
Reforms Urged by the Howard Association.—The 1910 report of the Howard Association of England makes an appeal for the securing of the following nine reforms before the meeting of the International Prison Congress in London in 1915:
Anti-Mugging Bill Vetoed.—The International Association of Chiefs of Police and the police authorities in New York State were able to induce Governor Dix of New York to veto the “anti-mugging” and “anti-third degree” bill recently passed by the Legislature of that State. The proposed law provided that no photograph, measurement, or physical examination of any person charged with a crime should be made by the police prior to conviction, and that no such prisoner should be questioned further than to get information as to his or her identity, except in the presence of a magistrate.
Governor Dix in vetoing the bill declared:
“It is the first duty of the state to protect from criminals the lives and property of citizens. To this end the officers charged with the prevention, detection and punishment of crime should be given ample powers by statute, and should receive the support of all good citizens. This bill hampers the police in securing the most usual and simple means of identification of suspected criminals. It adds difficulty to securing evidence of crime and clews to its detection. It subjects officers of arrest to unnecessary and groundless accusations in case of alleged violence or persecution.”
“It is the first duty of the state to protect from criminals the lives and property of citizens. To this end the officers charged with the prevention, detection and punishment of crime should be given ample powers by statute, and should receive the support of all good citizens. This bill hampers the police in securing the most usual and simple means of identification of suspected criminals. It adds difficulty to securing evidence of crime and clews to its detection. It subjects officers of arrest to unnecessary and groundless accusations in case of alleged violence or persecution.”
National Probation Association.—This is the new name of the National Probation Officers’ Association. The change was decided upon at the fourth annual meeting of the organization in Boston in June. The membership of the association includes probation and parole officers, judges and others interested in probation and parole. Judge George S. Addams of the Cleveland Juvenile Court is president for the ensuing year, and Arthur W. Towne of the State Probation Commission, Albany, is secretary-treasurer. Next year’s meeting will be held in Cleveland during the week of the National Conference of Charities and Correction.
The association has published a directory of probation officers in the United States, which shows that there are about 900 such officers working under salary. It also has in preparation a handbook on juvenile court procedure and probation. This is being written by a committee of which Bernard Flexner of Louisville is chairman. The portion of the handbook, relating to investigating the cases of children brought before juvenile courts, was printed in preliminary form and discussed at the meeting in Boston. Following are extracts from this part of the handbook:
“For intelligent disposition of any case a judge must have in his possession the essential facts regarding the life and history of the child before him, and it must be ascertained that these facts come from a reliable source, known to the court. Whenever paid probation officers are employed, the investigations should be left to these officers. An investigation, to be entitled to the name, must include first, an interview with the child and, second, a visit to his home, including an interview with his relatives. That is certainly the minimum standard for adequate investigation. To it may be profitably added the investigation of the school record; of the employment record in the cases of older boys or girls, and of church and neighborhood associations.”
“The business of investigation is one of the most serious defects in our juvenile court system. There are very few courts whose investigations are systematic, uniform and impartial. Cases are often rushed through and the facts learned afterwards. Many cases are decided on partial evidence, many of the most significant facts cropping out after the child has been disposed of by the court. It is better, if necessary, to keep a child in detention a few days longerand to continue the case, if by that method a painstaking investigation takes the place of a hasty, slipshod inquiry.”
A Drugless Institution.—Warden Simpson of the Jackson prison is reported in the Detroit Journal as declaring that he has succeeded in practically abolishing the illicit use of drugs in that institution. “It was the greatest evil I had to contend with on my arrival,” he says. “Dope was present in large quantities, there were numerous drug fiends and they were all disabled by its consumption. The gateways of this traffic were numerous—through the mails, by express, by trusties and visitors, and free men, such as teamsters, having access to the shops and yards. All this has been stopped by proper supervision and guarding, resulting from the organization of the official force. All visiting is now conducted over a table, with an officer sitting at the end, and a partition running under the table, so that no drugs can enter in this way. Visitors are no longer conducted through the shops and yards, and the inmates work with better results under this plan, as before they naturally regarded themselves as curiosities, to be placed on exhibition at a slight remuneration to the state.”
Col. Scott’s New Position.—Governor Dix of New York has recently appointed the well-known penologist, Col. Joseph F. Scott of Elmira Reformatory, to succeed Mr. C. V. Collins, resigned, as superintendent of state prisons. Col. Scott was formerly superintendent of Concord Reformatory in Massachusetts, and has been the efficient head of Elmira since 1903. His appointment is for a term of six years. The institution under his charge are Sing Sing, Auburn, Clinton and Great Meadow Prisons; the hospitals for the criminal insane at Dannemora and Matteawan, and the State Farm for Women at Valatie.
Col. Scott’s appointment followed an official investigation of the prisons, which was made by the Governor’s office. Col. Scott has named John S. Kennedy as warden of Sing Sing, William J. Homer as warden of Great Meadows, and John H. Mealey as warden of the new State Farm for Women. Dr. Robert B. Lamb has resigned from the superintendency of the Matteawan State Hospital, and a civil service examination has been held for the purpose of filling the position; but the appointment has not yet been made.
Farm for Convicts in Mississippi.—The State of Mississippi, according to press dispatches, is planning to establish a 22,000 acre farm to be worked by convicts. Mississippi is undergoing a great awakening as to its agricultural possibilities, and it is expected that this farm will not only serve the purpose of benefiting the criminals placed on it, but will also tend to educate the public by bringing it to a fuller realization of the possibilities of agriculture. Part of the tract to be worked is cut-over timber lands. The principal crops will probably be corn, potatoes, melons, oranges and sugar cane.
American Institute of Criminal Law.—The American Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology will hold its annual meeting in Boston on August 31 and September 1, meeting in connection with the American Bar Association. The secretary of the Institute is Harry E. Smoot, 31 West Lake Street, Chicago, Ill.
Compensation of Persons Held as Witnesses.—The following editorial concerning the obligation of the public to persons who are held in jail as witnesses appeared in a recent issue of the Worcester Gazette:
“In Springfield some time ago, one Guiseppi Ferreri was charged with murder. Two witnesses of the crime alleged, Antonio and Joseph Galetto, were held as witnesses. To assure their presence at the time of trial, these two witnesses were required to furnish bonds in $1,000. Being poor, they were unable to do this and are now languishing in jail. There they will stay for months, perhaps, separated from their families, and friends and denied the privilege of earning a living.”
“What has happened to these two men is likely to happen to anybody. They are in jail not because they committed a crime but because they are supposed to have seen one committed.
“‘It is nothing less than outrageous,’ says The Boston Post, ‘that two men can be imprisoned for months simply because they saw somebody else commit a murder.’ We subscribe to the statement. Undoubtedly the ends of justice sternly demand the retention of such witnesses. It is necessary for the wellbeing and protection of the community that hard and fast measures be taken for the prosecution of murderers.”
“But why should any two men or any one man, be made to bear heavy burdens to the end that justice may be done. Not these two men but all society will be benefited if a conviction is brought about. Then why should not the burden incident be distributed and borne by society as a whole rather than by two of its members?”
“If it is deemed wise to keep these two witnesses in durance, if their privilege to earn a living is taken from them by society for society’s benefit, then society owes them something. It owes them compensation for the time they give in the service of society. They are not criminals but laborers worthy of their hire.”
“Clapping innocent people into jail is serious business. And witnesses thus detained, like innocent people falsely imprisoned, should receive pay from the state for the service done in one case and damages for the injustice committed in the other.”
Swimming Pool for Convicts.—Additions are being built at the State Farm for vagrants at Bridgewater, Mass., and, according to the Boston Herald, one of the features of the new building will be a swimming pool.
Nevada Convicts to Build Roads.—As the result of recent legislation, convicts in Nevada are to be put to work constructing roads. The Washoe county commissioners, according to a press despatch, have requested 50 convicts to work on the highways in that county. The state is to pay one dollar per day for each convict engaged on good roads work, and to furnish the implements and all the necessary materials. Each convict who does the work assigned to him is to receive twenty-five cents a day, as well as a commutation of sentence. The prisoners will live in tents and be under constant guard.