Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-12-08
THE RELEASED OF CoNvlCTs
Power Of Unitedstatfes Commissioners Under
the Statute.
Point Settled by Court Of Appeals
statu. of{ poi,ce court-rhe
Issues Raised.

While. as stated in The Star, the Court of
Appeals yesterday afternoon dismissed the
appeal noted by District Attorney Davis
to the decision of Judge Cole in the matter
of the questioned right of the District Su-
preme Court to appoint United States COM
m1ssioners. one contention made by Mr.
Davis and the one he was perhaps more in
terested In, was sustained by the appellate
tribunal. That was the contention of the
district attorney that United States COM
missoners are not authorized to release
rEder the provisions of what is known as
the poor convicts act" persons sentenced
to imprisonment by the Police Court.
District Attorney Davis raised both cues
IONS by writ of certiorari which writ, the
court OF Appeals holds, cannot be used to
test the right of a United States COM
missioner to hold the office.
Right of the Commtssioners,
The more important question, says the
court, involves the right Of the United
states commissioners to release a con-
Wet sent from the Police Court after he
mas served thirty days, upon the showing
mat ne Is unable to pay the fine imposed.
the vital point being whether the Police
Court or the District of Columbia is a
court OF the United States contemplated
by the poor convict act. After reviewing
the act, the court says:
Ihat there is no good reason to conflne
the application of this enactment to the
courts Of the United States in the sew
eral states, exclusive of those of the Dis
trict of Columbia, seems very clear to us.
But 1t does not necessarily follow from
tnls that the expression any court of the
United States used by Congress in sec
tion lo42 of the Revised Statutes, was in
tended or should he construed to include
Such tribunal as the Police Court OF the
District of Columbia. That court is I'M
doubtedly, in one sense, court of the
United States as is even the court Of a
justice of the peace in this District, or a
court-martial, or any other tribunal es-
tablished by Congress for temporary or
special circumstances, and 1t does not
make the Police Court any less a court of
the United States to call 1t a legislative
court for the legislative power can estab-
lish no court, here or elsewhere, not au-
thorized by the Constitution. But the fact
that the Police Court is a court of the
United States created by the Congress of the
United States does not necessarily make
applicable to it all laws enacted for the
courts of the United States.'
In a Constitutional Sense.
Further on, the court says: THE Po-
lice Court Of the District Of Columbia
therefore, although a court of the United
States is not court Of the United
States in the sense Of the federal Consti-
tuition. and there is no reason for giving to
the same expression, in a statute, a broad
err meaning than is given to it in the Con-
stitution. In fact, there is no mention of
the courts Of the United States in any
statute. We may coRclusively assume that
only the courts of general jurisdic ton, in
tended by the Constitution, are meant, I'M
less there is special reason to be dcduced
from the context of the statute giving TO
the expression a different meaning"
Therefore, the court holds that it was
not the intention of Congress to authorize
United States commissioners to interfere
or disturb the sentences imposed in the
Police Court, and that the poor convict
act only applies to convicts sent from the
District Supreme Court.
The effect of this decision of the Court
of Appeals will he, of course, to prevent the
further practice of releasing under the
poor convicts' act persons sentenced to i'm
prisonment by the Police Court.
Mr.. Davis Gratihed.
Speaking to a Star reporter this after
noon in regard to the decision of the Court
of Appeals, handed down late yesterday at
ternoon iii the of United States Com
missioner Mills, District Attorney Davis
said:
Il was most interested in the ruling of
the Court of Appeals on the matter of
Police Court sentences. | am very glad to
have the question settled it was, as an
end is put TO tne release by United States
commissioners of prisoners sentenced by
the Police Court judges"