The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1884-01-03
Estate Journal.l
LaXity Of Criminal Jurisdiction.

Speaking Of the murder wave"
that is sweeping over the country, and
discussing its causes, the Chicago
Tribune makes some statements that
furnish material for reflection. The
Tribune says:
sit is useless to say that Justice
does it's work with anything like COM
pleteness. There have been 1917
murders committed in this country
this year, as reported by telegraph,
which Of course does not include The
whole number, whereas during the
whole of last year there were but
1865. AS against this awful list
there have been but ninety-three per-
sons hanged, the majority of whom
were negroes in the South, who may
not have been guilty, and 118 per-
sons lynched, Of whom the majority
were also Southern negroes, whose
guilt was many times in doubt. As
suming that all were guilty, the pun
ishment of 211 persons where over
1900 murders were committed is pal
pably a failure of justice, and shows
that the laws or the methods of exc
cutting the laws are not sufficient to
deter the commission Of crime"
Fifteen hundred murders in year,
and only ninety-three persons lawful
ly hanged-is not that a suggestive
commentary upon the efficiency, or
rather inefficiency, of our means Of
furnishing crime? But still more
suggestive and alarming is the fact
that, during the same period, 118 per-
sons were lynched. These lynchings
were no doubt due, in nine cases out
Of ten, as the Chicago Tribune sug-
gests, to the fact that the people were
exasperated by the failure Of justice,
and hopeless that any penalty would
be administered. "They have, there
fore, in the very rage Of despair, ta-
ken the law into their own hands, and
shut off the customary avenues of es-
cape by bubbles, delay and techni-
calities."
This popular distrust of the courts
is not to be wondered at considering
the lawlessness that is abroad, and the
little, comparatively speaking, that
the courts do to check it or to protect
life and property. Commonly this
lax dealing with crime is attributed to
certain namby-pamby. indulgent
sentiment toward criminals, but it is
probably still more attributable to the
tricks, technicalities and make-shifts
Of the law, and the hairsplitting
methods Of it's administration. The
object Of the law is to protect society,
but its object and spirit are lost sight
Of in endless wranglings and argu-
mentations about its terms, forms and
technicalities. The mere forms of le-
gal phraseology are put before the
supreme purpose Of the law, that of
protecting the innocent and furnishing
the guilty. The trial Of O'Donnell
lasted but two days, and that in a
country where Justice is still admin
istered according to the old common
law forms, while the Guiteau trial
clear as the case was lasted several
months.
Even the conviction Of a criminal
by no means always insures his pun
ishment, for no sooner is conviction
reached than the efforts, too often sue
cessful, of pettifoggers and sentimen-
talists begin, to nullify the verdict,
and its effect, by new trial, eommu-
tation or pardon.
The efficiency and vigor of our po-
lice system in detecting crime are also
deficient. The cases Of mysterious
murder, burglary, arson, theft and
other crimes, the perpetrators of
which are not caught or detected, are
strickingly frequent. When there is
laxity about furnishing criminals it is
natural that there should be ineffi-
cheney in catching them. Political
influences are also at work to par
alyze and thwart police agencies. It
is great misfortune that both our
judicial and police powers are more
or less dependent upon popular ca
price, and that, too frequently, the ca
price of criminal classes. We shall
not have thoroughly efficient courts
or police administration until both
shall be entirely divorced from all
such dependence, and the sooner this
divorce takes place the better for So
ciety.