Waterbury Democrat., 1901-02-11
THE ABOLITION BILL.
Waterbury Lawyers Beginning to
 Scrutinize the Proposed eNIasure.

The bill for the abolition of criminal jurisdiction ill the district court is causing considerable uneasiness among republican lawyers and the supporters of the proposition to make Judge Brad street prosecuting attorney in that court. IL was common report at first that the author of the bill was either Attorney Terry or his former partner and retiring prosecuting attorney. Mr
 Bronson. but now those who held this opinion admit they were careless when
 they formed it. Because Mir Bronson is going to be busted and because NIT.
 Terry never favored establishing the district court under any conditions they
 were said to be the authors of the
 bill. The bill is not so unpopular now
 as it waS when first heard of. It is claimed that Representative Lilley, the pretended watch dog of the treasury
 must admit that it is Il fair bill then ana It Is taken for granted that his colleague. Mir GHilfoilc. favors if.
 The actual purpose of organizing the district court was to relieve the Su- perior court of q great deal of cases
 that really did not warrant the atten-
 rion of that branch of the judiciary
 These were mostly appeals of petty nature. liquor cases, assaults and such like. The superior court did not exist
 here then and all these cases went to
 New Haven. that is when they were,
 tried, which Was very seldom. They
 were not worth the expense to the
 state of taking 10 New Haven, the
 most of them. at least. and so hum
 dreds and hundreds were nolled or
 pigeonholed. IT is said that when Mir Terry, who was assistant states at
 tornev at that time, reliEQuishpd that
 office his IpS1, was f1i)1y .hbnl. t,1Il
 of appeals of the most trivial charac-
 ter. The consequence was the demor-
 alization of justice. Every one found guilty in the city court took an appeal and that was the last heard of the
 case.
 Immediately succeeding the estab- fishing of the district court and for years afterward, considerable business Was transacted there. Naugatuck
 alone used to keep the court busy for weeks. Then every officer of that
 court earned his salary; now they dD
 not. The. salary of the judge of 1lle
 city court was not as high as it is at present, and somehow he had to do more work then. Now the deputy y judge of the district court draws quite q large sum from the city court, not because Of the business there but sim ply because lhc regular judge is sel- dom present.
 No criminal business is ever trans acted in 1le district court from any other town ill the district nowadays but Waterbury. and very little at tina [. The prosecuting attorney of that court
 did not transact business enough to occupy him a month last year. because
 there was no criminal business. 1t
 was not case of shirking work. Yet he was paid ST:5U0. Now it is proposed
 ill the bill in question to abolish crim- inal jurisdiction in that court and also
 the office of deputy judge and insist | that the judges of both courts shall give. their official business precedence over their private affairs. Ii is claimed that State Attorney Kellogg favorS | this measure, because he pretendS to be consistent. He was instrumental in putting brakes upon the city treasury | he will not refuse to help i'll doing 1he l same on 1he local courts. His own salary as prosecutor ill the superior
 court would naturally be increased | thereby, for the business that would | be taken from the district court would | go to the superior court
 The situation is so obviously in need | of strict attention, it is so plainly an | avenue of unnecessary expense. anu | the cure is so simple and handy in the | bill that is intended 10 rectifv it. this | bill introduced by request by senator
 Kennedy. that it has actually aroused | tie principal beneiiciarics of th;s eX- | travagance 10 acton.