The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1891-03-09
General Amazement Over
the Imprisonment of
Those Girl Wit
neSSeS.
HOW OFFICIALS SEE IT.
They Are Well Fed and Housed an d
Their Morals Do Not Seem
to Count.
PROMPT ACTION NEEDED.

young man detained as witnesses at tno
County Jail, made public in The SUNDAY
MORNING NEWS yesterday, has created
much amazement. People found it hard
to believe such an outrage could be COM
mitted under the name of law.
At meeting of the State Charities Aid
Association, held in the Young Mems
Christian Association rooms on Thurs
dav, Mrs. Caroline Alexander, sister of
Colonel Z. A. Stevens of Hoboken,
made the announcement that Susan
Schneider, thirteen years old,
Mary Riley, three years her
senior, aud Frederick Schneider, young
man, were legally hnt unjustly detained
in the jail. The NEWS at once began an
Investigation, and learned, as stated yes
terday, that Susan and her brother had
been In Jail since December IL, and Mary
Riley since February g. The only reaso II
for their confinement in Jail
was v,slst... that they sa Were cII,n,naI qssae1
cases. 1t was also learned that the girls
are being kept in the witness warowhich h
contains nine cells and two halls and
where witnesses and women who have
babes and are charged with violations OF
tine law are kept The language in the
hearing of the girls and the Influences
they are subjected to can as well be
imagined as told.
BUT THEY LET THE cULPRIT ESCAPE.
lu reference to this matter l saw
Assistant Prosecutor Noonau today and
in response to my question he replled:-
"rhe interest taken by The SUNDAY
MORNING NEWS in the case OF young
scaneider and his sister Is. of course,
creditable TO the humanity and public
spirit of the managers OF that newspaper.
They are detained as witnesses against
their father. This man and bis wife sew
trai mouths ago made criminal COM
paint against their son, in which
they chai ged him with assaulting their
daughter The boy was indicted on
the evidence of his parents. When the
case came to trial the fIther deliberately
admitted that in accusing his sou he had
committed perjury. He was thereupon
Immediately taken into custody by order
of the Court and was indicted at the
present term for perjury. Having been
admitted to bail, hover, he failed to
appear for trial and his bonds
han has been. and Is still trying
TO discover his whereabouts. This Schnei-
der is the man who last spring caused the
arrest Of Michael Lumm, business rival,
On q charge of murder. Lumm was kept
i'll Jail for some time on this charge, and
WHEN it was found to be utterly baseless
he was discharged aud died soon after
wards In consequences of the confinement
and worriment TO which he had been sub
jected. I think under the circum-
stances you will agree with me
that gentleman, of Mr.. Schneider's
variegated and conspicuous deprayity
should not be lightly suffered to go un-
whipped OF justice. To bring him TO JUS
tice at ali 1t is absolutely imperative that
he should be cut off from all communica-
tion with or control over his children,
and for this reason his son and daughter
were committed TO jail. They are con-
fined not in a cell but in the detention
rooms, where physically and morally they
are much better of than they were at
home. II. however, all reasonable efforts
10 capture Schneider should prove aoor-
live, 1t is quite likely that their discharge
will speedily be ordered.
when complaining witness is COM
mitted to jail. it often happens that the
first thing the defendant does is to try to
get bail for the witness in the hope that
by brioes or threats the witness may be
deferred from appearing at the trial.
Such attempts to fustrate justice are
quite common, not to say chestnutty.
You may remember that in the famous
SmIth-Bennett murder case the defen-
dants were convicted mainly on the tes-
timony of n woman who had been de-
tanned in jail as witness. After new
trial had been ordered this woman got
out on bail. and when she was wanted at
the second trial she could not
be found. and the prisoners were
this way is one of the unavoidable hard
ships of the best Of systems. 1t is no
pleasure to the Court or TO the Prosec u
tor TO keep such individuals in jail. The
only personal interest which the Court or
the Prosecutor can have is TO dispose of
the criminal business of the country as
promptly as is consistent with the orderly
administration of publc justice"
JUDGE LIPPINcoTT's VIEW OF IT.
Judge Lippincott WAS next seen. When
asked what he thought OF the matter ne
answered.
.'If some of these charitable women
who take such an interest in their work
would do SO when their work was needed,
they might do some good. The criminal
cases that they generally interest them
selves in most are the worst and the same
applies to the criminals"
well, do you not think those people
have been detained in Jail long enough as
witnesses when the principals are at
large, having forfeited bail oonds"
'sIhe question of the length of time
witnesses should be confined depends al
most entirely on the Prosecutor. The
recommendation Of the Prosecutor to
discharge witness is, except in very,yery
rare cases, acted on by the Court favor
ably. The law. however, permits the de-
tention OF witnesses for an almost unlim-
tied time unless the matter is brought to
the attention of the Court'
sJudge, do not you think it hard law
which Confines the innocent and permits
the guilty TO 90 ut largef'
"Your question is not a right one. The
law does not intend that any one should
escape who deserves punishment. The
government owns the lives of every SUBJ
ject. and also the liberty, when 1t Is neces-
sary to exercise the right. 1t is necessary
TO punish criminals, aud all persons must
take their share In the operation of the
law. Some people think it a great ard
ship to be subpRnaed as witness and lose
a hall days work. 1t is natural the per-
sons locked up feel the same way If
they could give bail they would be re :
leased. In this case, from the informa-
ton that the Court has received, the wit
nesses detained are much better off than
they ever were before. The charita BILE
ladies who arc interested in the Schneider
girl should come TO the front and say
we will give you home, for it woul d
be sin TO permit her to return to her
father. Do you ever hear these charita
bic women talk Of providing homes"
If what You have said Is true as to
the condition of these witnesses, why
should people interest shemselvss In
them :"
=. 1t very frequently happens that a
selfish interest Is behind IT, A few days
ego application was made 20 me 70 dis