The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1877-04-14
From the Montpelier Freeman. !
q Legal Reprieve.

Governor Fairbanks humanity in post
poning PhaiTs execution till Downings
story can be sifted, does him credit. And
We believe that he had good legal right to
grant the reprieve, Notwithstanding the
arguments of TIE RUTLAND GLOBE and
some other papers TO the contrary.
The constitution as now printed provides
that in case Of murder and treason the gov
ernOr shall have power only "to grant re-
prieves, but not to pardon until after the
end of the next session of assembly," A
careless reading would make this grant
of power to repricve at any time and to
pardon after session of the assembly.
Such construction has been put upon this
clause for within the last third of century
a murderer has been pardoned in this state
But as long ago as 1910 Chief Justice
Williams, in delivering an opinion (fouud
in Vol. -, Vermont REPORTS in this coun-
ty in the case of one George Holmes, had
stated the correct doctrine that the makers
of our constitution intended to guard jeal-
ously the course of justice from the inter-
ference OF the executive and to keep the
pardonlng power in capital cases in the
hands OF the legislature, and that the gov
ernor In cases OF murder had no power to
pardon but only to reprieve.
In this connection an article in the Free
Press, published in 1874, upon the value of
comma, is interesting. 1t was there
shown that after the word pardon, in the
above given extract frcm the constitution,
there should be a comma there was OF @
placed there in the first publication of the
constitution in 1770 but in later editions II
has dropped out The actual reading of
the constitution is then in accordance with
Chief Justice Williams construction and
is that the governor has in murder cases
only "power to grant reprieVes, but not to
pardon, until after the end of the next SEES
sion of assembly"
The fifteenth article of ''Part the First"
of our constitution, says that
The power Of suspending laws, or the
execution of laws, ought never to be exer-
csed bat by the legislature,o or by authority
derived from it, to be exercised in such par
ticular case as this constitution, or the
legislature, shall provide for"
The only provision made by the consti-
tuition or laws of Vermont as to granting
reprieves in murder cases 10 the ono we
haye.above quoted, which grants (strikiug
out the parenthetical clause "power TO
grant repreives until after the end OF the
next session of assembly,"
SO far we go with THE GLOBE, ard
would hold the executive of the state to a
strict construction of the law. But when
1t comes to saying that "the next session
OF assembly intended by the constitution
was the one held last fall, we contend it
was not. The next session meant by the
constitution is, by law and common sense,
the session following the day set by tho
court in the sentence, for the execution of
the criminal. A reprieve for Phair before
April 9th, 1877, the day on which he was
to have been hung, would have been nom
sensical. The day named In sentence is
the day meant by the constitution as the
starting point Of reckoning time, other
wise the power granted amounts to moth
ing.
From 1878 to 1912 a judge could SEN
tence man convicted of murder to be
hung ON any day, however near, he chose.
SO the only chance convict could have to
apply TO the pardoning power (the legisla-
ture) might depend on reprieye granted
by the governor.
-From 1S42 to 1870 the law was so a ses-
sion OF the legislature must intervene be-
tween conviction and hanging. II was a
step forward in securing to convict
chance TO apply to the pardoning power.
But the law Of 1912 tried to take away no
right Of reprieye, it merely postponed exc