The weekly Arizona miner., 1885-07-31
OPINION RENDERED BY ArroaSHr GENERAL CHURCHILL.
OFFICE or rHE AfToRxKy-G8 PxECorr, July 27, 1895.

PxECorr, July 7, lSSS.
 Ho~. F. < IasaGs. S.ps Territorial Pri.es, f"aa:
 SIS:-You have asked ny opinion con cerniny the construction of the Act of .hs 18th Legislative Assembly, entitled "An Act entitled An Act smendatory of and supplementary 'o Chapter XVI of the Com. piled Lrws, entitled Of Territorial Pris ,u,
 in iss applic.tiou to the eommutatiou of time allowed convicts for good behavior,
 and l have the hoaor to reply q fellows, vm:;
 The Act approved Feb. 7th. 1877, (print-
 ed on page lsI Compiled LAwD provided
 that "Every convict who shall have been sentenced for Arm of yesrs, |s shall be entitled to deduction of one day por n,onta fru,n his sentence, ur'each mosih he shsll continue to .sobey all the rules of che Penitcntiary for the period of ono year from the paasage of this Act" .ss H All such couvicts who shall be entitled to one cay per month, according to the provi- sions of the above Section, shs Il for like faithful observance Uf all the rules for the second year, te entitled to . deduction of two days per month, and if any Convict shall continue his department for the re- mzindcr cf the time of his seutencc, after the cx xp;rstion of txo years, he shall be en titled to deduction of four days per
 month until his tune shsll expire" (See
 Section 5, page l9l Com. Laws) He i., however, liable to forfeit these d. .ductious or credits by wiilfui violation of the rules l of the prison It any tune after earaiug them and before being discharged.
 And the Act Grss above referred 0, paced st the last session, does not ex. pressly refer in terms to the Act of 1877 lshove quoted, nor does it eApressly pro vide the method of computation ia the caec of . convict who had served part
 ot his term and become entitled 10 de ductions at the date when ths Act took effect; nur does ir expressly declare whether the computations under its prOyi. si0ns should commence in the same manner a though the tesm of the sentence com- msneed at or after the date when the Ac. took efect-xnd thereby entitling the pris- peer to deduction of tWo moptns for the 6rss two years of compliance with its pro viaioos erter tls passogs cf de Act: four months in each of the next two years; and five moBths in each of the remaining yesrs of his term; but under the prosisions of the former Act, the prisoner was entitled to an increasing cammutation per year, if his good behavaOr continued with ono day per month for the first. two dsys per month for the second, and four days per month during the remainder of
 the term of his sentence.
 It is apparent, however. that in cases
 where pr,soners, sentenced for over four
 years, have served large portion of their
 time, prior to the passage of this Last Act
 and haze earned dedUctIons-i their com.
 mutation is to be reckoned under the pro
 visions of the new Act in she saine manner
 e though their term commenced with its
 passage-then the scale of the communication
 would be lowered, and that they would in
 the fifth year of their confinement and con
 tinuous good behavinr, receive only the
 allowance given by the new Act to pr,sc-
 ners during the first year of their term
 Whils there is ground for debate upon both sides of this proposition, am inclined to the belief that while the Legislature has
 falled to express its intent clearly in this respect, that considcrins the old Act and the new, and taking all the circumstances Of the subject-snatter into confederation, the Legislature did not intend to take away
 any of the. inducements promised by the former Act to persons confined in pr,son. The whole purposs of giving these credits | to persOus sentenced to imprisonment whereby they are given the opportunity by good behavior and industry to shorten their 1 terms of confinement, U to encourage ref- ormatisn of the convicts and to induce th. m to acquire habits of self-disciplins, and obedience to law which they l will carry forth with them into the world l when they shsl be finally set at liberty; and keeping this ultimate intent oi the | Legislature in view, cannot readily come to the conclusion that it was intended by this Act to reduce the scale of increased already partially earned ty the prisoners st the date of the passage of the Act. Such would b. the practical effect, If literal construction were ven to he terms of inc Statute, aside from all other consideyations.
 1t is the weh settled law of the land that there are three points to be considered in Inc construction of remedial Statutes, (aud his n remedial Ststute), viz:
 lst. The old Law;
 2d. The mischief;
 Sd. Ths remedy.
 In the cas- under consideration. if 1t ap- 'esrs that any prisoner was sentenced to al srm Of moro than four years and that he nd served four yssrs of that term st the late Of the paasage Of the Act, and that he lad in all respects O conducted himself by pdvstEy ard good behavior a to have 'arued sll the eommutation to which the old aw entitled him-that old law held out the nducement to him that the rate of commu- stion woul3 be increased in shs ffsh year nd from thence during the term of the entence; tut, if the new Statute is nov pplied to this casa in the esms manner a ho0gh the term of the sentence began it vith the passage of the Act-it would have he unjust effect If depriving the prisoner f this increased cemmutati"n which he 'as already earned and relegate him to the anne position iu which he vas during the int year of ks confinement; and instead f encouraging the continuance of good be- may well have quits the sppo- ate effect. It might we'll be said to Ie 'rsseh of faith pledged by the terms of the {, Id law which was repealed by the new. , 'uch construction would involve the i, onclusios that the Lesialatare intended to 10 precisely what the main purpose of the let vAs to avoid doing.
 am therefore of the opinion that the l