St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1896-01-11
THE CHANGE IN THE BOEN ACT

Senator Davis has introduced bill
spur of eX-Representative Boon, which
required that the preliminary exam
lnation and trial of all offenders
against federal laws should be held in
pffense was committed, the district be-
Ing divided into six divisions with
Terms of court in each. The change
has evidently been either much mis-
understood by the press, especially
that Of the Seventh congressional dis
lrict, or those papers are willing to
have committed the grievous injustice
Ind hardships to the accused which
)he Been bill necessitates, merely in
lhe interest of the custodians of the
prisoners. The latter is too small a
motive to influence the broad-minded
gentlemen who edit these papers, and
we are constrained to think that they
30 not understand the change sought
10 be made. Their argument, If it may
be SO termed, that it is merely an eff
Fort of the executive officers of the
federal courts to center business in
the Twin Cities supports this con-
btruction.
The hardships sought to be relieved
by the modification may best be illus
trated by concrete instances. At a re-
cent Duluth term, after the grand
Jury had been discharged a prisoner
was brought in charged with introduce
ing liquor into an Indian reservation.
The district attorney appeared before
the commissioner and the man pleaded
guilty and asked to be taken before
The court to receive his sentence. The
Dffense is an indictable one, and, as
the grand jury was not in session and
the court had no jurisdiction to re-
eeive the plea and impose the SEN
hence, the request had to be denied
The court could only fix the bail and
order the man committed until bailed.
Unable to furnish the bonds, too poor
to deposit the amount, the result was
That the man had to lie in Jail for six
months until another term of court
and another grand jury was in session
before he could enter plea of guilty
and be punished by fine and a term
bf Imprisonment usually but a small
part Of the time he had already been
confined
Another instance. An Indictment
WAS found for grave offense in the
Mankato division. Important Witness
les for the defendant were absent He
asked for a continuance, stating~what
he expected to prove. The district at
torney was willing to stipulate for the
admission Of this statement Of what
the evidence of the absent witnesses
would be- but the court ruled that this
was not permissible. The defendant
was anxious for trial and moved the
court to send the case to an adjoin-
ing division, where the trial could be
had in q couple of months. The Boen
act prevented this by it's mandate that
the trial should be in the division
where the offense was committed. The
court granted a continuance over the
term, fixing bail at a reasonable sum,
but one for which the defendant was
unable to obtain bondsmen. The OPP
Grafton of the Boen act in this Is to
force the defendant, anxious for trial,
presumably innocent, and entitled I'M
der the constitution to speedy trial."
to remain in Jail six months and until
the per&mbulatory court swings
around its semi-annual circle to the
''place where the offense was COM
mitted."
These instances, but two Of many,
Illustrate the hard injustice of the
Eell-meant Boen act. Now what
change is proposed? Only this; that
defendant arraigned under an in
dictment by the grand jury or an in
formation filed by the district attor-
aey. may move for trial in any other