Omaha daily bee., 1902-08-05
AFCOUBTYS EXPENSE
HsW County Attorney and Deputies Help
10 Spend Public Money.
MANY cRIMINAL cAsEs co OVER IERM
Only -Four Of seventy Complaints
vnea Durine May Term Disposed
o ~ Trial Proceedings
-Othets wsit.

Inc May TERM OF the olblflCt oDuIt - TO
close this week. probably Wednesday. II
has continued through three full months
and the criminal docket is practically a
closed book. Il shows that during the term
there have been seventy entries. but that
only four Of the cases INCLUDED have been
carried through formal trial proceedings
before a jury. The $500 county attorney,
his four 1890 deputies and his 5000 mes
Isenger have been too busy, It is explained,
20 reach the others.
These four were not cases of such Inn
,portance that the nation felt particularly
relieved when they were disposed Of. LII
liam Stevens and Lulu Patterson, both
colofed. were convicted of larceny. n. X.
Lee stons Of assault and battery and
Daniel Lucey Of perjury.
Considering none but the May filings.
the number Of cases not prosecuted by the
county attorney equals the number Of his
convictions. The fortunates we're Peter
Belitz. stabbing with intent to wound;
Patrick Lynch. burglary; Tom Dombroski.
assault with intent 30 do great bodily
harm: william Davis, daylight breaking
ana entering. The records show that
Davis had pleaded guilty, then withdrew
his plea to enter one Of not guilty and
she county attorney moved to nolle
prosequi the case.
Twelve prisoners. mostly from the po-
lice court. where Judge Berka had FIRST
declared their guilt. finally pleaded guilty
before II came to a showdown and took
mihgated sentences.
free Board for waffins ones.
There was one discharge, two habeas cor
pus proceedings and the others are out on
bail or their own recognizance, except eight
who are at the county Jail and win have to
wait there until next term for trial. The
fact that the county attorney didn't reach
them this term IL to cost the county at
least t21s. as the sheriff is paid 45 cents.
per day for the keep Of each prisoner. and
It will be sixty days before the fall term
opens The county can perhaps stand s21e.
but unfortunately that is only a small item
in the total that is a~ccruIng by the same
means in the JAIL once. There are now
nfty prisoners, including four women, 90
the sherin's bill per day Is $22.b0. He drew
5000 back dues on the nrst appropriation
sheet passed under the new levy, HIS board
bin for May alone being s7Ie.7o and for
June e657.s5.
These prisoners have nothing to do but
TO wait. Som Of them would prefer To-
work and most OF them are eager for ex-
~iercise, but the sheriff has nothing to set
them at except the cleaning up 81 their
own quarters and their laundry work. with
ELK ueDuTy BneriHs anu iuur juiierp MS their
0vsrBesrs, forty ablehodied men with moth
ling 70 DO but run up che county's expense
Ebnl. gaze out Of the jail windows each
smorping 70 watch ole other man NOW the
lawn and keep the walks tidy for ~ per
day. The counfy's road work and mowins
lfe all hired done. while these same jail in
mates curse the fate that deprivos them Of
nunn . nhanon IN fnsonf ahofp tno.hIaa e.
lDoFk.
Cost ,of Defending Prisoners.
Another teak IN the county treasury IL
tat the bunE whence flows money for de-
Tending priBonsrs, During the May term
there has seemed q growing psnury on
CHOSE days when the judge asked the pris-
oners n they had counsel or means to He-
cure such Twenty Of them replied that
they had not. For defending. the county
pays not less than sa5. 80 that for this
service alone the expenses re5uIting from
the prsliminaEies OF the May term will be
at. least $500.
with the taxpayers footing the bills Of
both the lawyer who prosecutes and the
lawyer who defends. neither the prisoner
nor any attorney 10 much affected nnan-
ciaIly BY the outcome of the suit. II the
verdict be against the prisoner and he
receives 8 jail sentence, with costs i'm
posed. be simply returns to the Flynn
hotel" and there piles more onto the tax
payers shoulders AZ the rate Of IS cents
per day without giving any service what
ever IN return. After his sentence is
served he'then begins service on the costs.
He lays out" the costs at the rate OF
- or So per day. just Is the sheriff elects.
Expressive Burden to County.
en- view Of the fact that under the pres
emit method OF handling county legal affairs
. prisoner IL an expensive burden to the
county from the hour Of his arrest until
that Of his ~releAse. Il seems strange 70 me
that shiehds doosn't try to push things along
a little" remarked court house attache.
1T would be to his interest 70 do 80, for
the public. doesn't like this idea OF paying
= prisoners board while the prosecutor
spends weeks out Of town on personal hnsi-
ness and aiIows his deputies to 60 90 far
as Canada TO put IN a'month there attend
ing 70 theirs. Court has been In aesslon ali
this time. ana while there have been no
3uries there were matters thai could have
been attended 70. The roasting Judge rs
telle gave the once In the williams matter
should have done some good. but doesn't
seen 10 have made any difference"