Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1898-02-23
WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY %, 1S9'
CONDITIONAL PARDONs.

The bill introduced in the House by Mr.
Lowry authorizing the Governor TO gran
conditional pardons may not receive
favorable action at this session of the
General Assembly but it is a proposition
which will certainly attract great public
attention in the course of the next few
years. The prevailing idea in it is to Offer
10 prisoners the incentive of diminishing
their term Of service by extraordinarily
good conduct and energy.
The existing law Of Virginia recognizes
the efficiency Of such an inducement TO
the extent OF allowing four days per month
for good conduct. But modern legislation
has gone much further than this. In
many States it is now provided that the
judge of the trial court in sentencing a
prisoner may give him what is called an
indeterminate sentence. Thus. man
convicted Of grand larceny may be SEN
fenced to a term of from five to fifteen
years-that is to say, in no event would
the Imprisonment be less than five years
nor more than fifteen, but it would rest
with the convict himself largely to deter
mine whether his Imprisonment should
continue for the long or the short term.
In other States, the prison authorities
are allowed to recommend to the Gov
ernor or TO the Board of Pardons, as the
case may be. such prisoners as have, by
their good conduct entitled themselves
10 a conditional pardon. In this case. the
pardoning power grants clemency upon
the express condition that the prisoner
shall faithfully observe the laws, live
the life OF a useful, industrious citizen.
and comply with certain conditions as TO
reporting his whereabouts. In default of
compliance with any of these conditions
he may be arrested and returned to his
prison cell.
We think it quite likely that the indie
terminate system could not be put into
operation in Virginia without constitu-
tiopal changes. Certainly it would neces-
state a very serious alteration fn our
count system, for the reason that here
the jury-not the Judge-6xes the term
Of sentence. However that may be, it
seems that there is no difficulty in the
way Of the Governor of this State grant.
Ing conditional pardons. At any rate
one or more Of our Attorneys-G General
have decided that this is constitutional.
We wish Mr.. Lowry's bill had been in
troduced earlier in the session so that it
could have received more attention than
it is likely to have granted it now, but as
we have said. IL is certain to do good, in
asmuch as the great need is for the pub
lie mind to be educated upon this point.
With that accomplished. the desired legis-
lation is sure to follow
The time will certainly come when Vir-
ginia will adopt some better method than
she now has TO terminate conditionally.
or otherwise, the terms OF sentence of
prisoners who have merited such conside-
ration. So far as we are informed on the
subject. every State that has adopted It
has found it beneficial. II offers to prison
ers the most powerful incentive pos
sible for good conduct and for industry,
and. on the other hand, it enables the
States to thin out their prison population
without weakening the administration OF
the penal laws.
1t is quite likely that under the con-
ditional pardon system. or the indeter-
inmate sentence system. from fifty to
one hundred OF the men who are now in
mates OF our penitentlary. would be en-
abled 10 regain their liberty and become
industrious and useful citizens One OF
the essentials Of the conditional pardon
system is that the prisoner shall be able
10 satisfy the authorities that when libe-
rated be will be able TO secure work-the |
law recognizing the fact that convict !
who has no promise or means OF earning
his livelihood Is almost sure to fan into
the old habits Of crime again.