Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-12-19
OUTSIDE POINT OF VIEW

The citizens OF Iowa in general, ana
Butler county in particular, have ar
rived at the conclusion, this in view OF
the extension Of the date of Busse's ex-
| ecution. that any man can kill his Wife
in cold blood, afterwards confess the
crime, and yet fail to receive the fuH
penalty Of the law l. e., hanging. And
with this opinion goes another, that
| such failure Of justice IL brought about
| by legal tactics that are disgrace TO
the legal profession, and to the state,
and the courts of the state and prac-
| tees that makes such result posi-
| BILE, and altogether probable. nhls reel
| ing often expressed is not so much
desire for the death of this self-con-
fessed murderer, as for reform
of this condition of affairs IN
part and parcel Of our GRIM
inal procedure. Cool headed, slow,
reasoning men. say of what use is the
trial of murderers, this at an expense
of thousands OF dollars when shrewd
attorney by bubble can defeat all OF
the work of judge and jury. And other
men not so cool headed. do not hesitate
to say this in hundreds OF cases, the
next wife murderer in Butler county
will not cost the county many dollars
for his trial. And the inference is
only too plain. Mob law Is thought OF
and intended in future cases of the
kind
And in this connection comes up the
often made suggestion of pardon
board for the state of Iowa. Not to
criticize in the least the last action of
Governor Cummins in this case, for
probably any man in his place with
the same situation before him, Woulo
have done the same, still such a po-
sition no one man should be compelled
to face. With supreme judges stand
ing out for points Of law, with per-
sonal appeal from the man condemned
to die in a few days, with the children
in his presence in tears, pleading Tor
the life Of their father, all this, and
stroke of his pen able to change 1t
all and give this murderer another
lease of life, is 1t strange Governor
cummins, used that pen, changed the
date?
But In several states, not one man.
but five or seven men would have had
Buses case or one like it before them.
The impersonal would have decided. II
by such q decision the law took Its
course. the responsibility would have
been divided, and If further time was
granted there would be a feeling in the
community, that not all of this pardon
board was blind to justice overpowered
by sympathy.
srha sta+a. Of Connecticut has such a
board of pardons. At stated periods all
cases for clemency come before them.
Year after year life sentence criminals
send in their petitions. Once in while
some evidence, not brought out in the
original trial, is made part of the pc
titions. And this board <impersonal,
made up of men noted for cool, deliver
ate thought, unswayed by the clamor of
press or people in favor of or against
such petitions, render decisions that
cause little comment, this for the rea-
son such decisions are on the real mers
its of the case. Here in Iowa we have
had several governors, whose record in
the matter of paroles and pardons We're
the least creditable Of all of their Off
cial acts. Communities have felt out
ragged by pardoned and paroled crimin-
ais set free, and returned to the coun-
ty that spent hundreds of dollars to
convict such criminals. Even the mo-
tives of such governors have been
questioned. Even politics have been
mixed up with paroles. Do we want a
continuance of such work? There's a
remedy. It's to have a board of par
dons in Iowa,