New-York tribune., 1908-10-10
THE THAW SCANDAL.

The success Of his lawyers in keeping Thaw
out of Matteawan half of the time since his
commitment, in having him transferred TO
luxurious apartments in a county jail and IN
relieving the monotony of waiting for freedom
by taking him about the countryside in auto
mobiles to attend hearings in friendly trumped
I'D suits constitutes the most serious scandal
in the history of criminal law in New York.
1t exceeds the scandal Of the protracted and
theatrical trials themselves. Thaw was sent to
Matteawan on February 1. His lawyers got him
out in June and he has been out ever since, al
though he has been adjudged a criminal luna
tic try q jury and by two judges of the Supreme
Court The blame for this situation does not
fall upon the law alone So far as the law is
concerned he might still be confined in the
asylum where he belongs, despite every effort of
his lawyers. He has had more than his strict
rights under our American system, which errs,
if at all, the side Of generosity toward per-
sons in his predicament.
The Thaw case was so simple that it ought
long ago to have been finally disposed of, and
the public permitted to forget it. In England
he would have been executed or securely lodged
in an asylum IN short order. A worthless de-
generate, having married one Of the harlotS
with whom he consoTted had his jealousy so
infamed by her that he shot down in cold blood
a man of genius. Yet this wretch, whose whole
life had been nothing but perversity and rot
tenness. was turned into a hero and avenger of
the sex, while his victim, whose public life had
been of inestimabe value to the country, and
whose private life, even if all the unsupported
charges against it were accepted as true, was
certainly not worse than his slayer's was con-
verted by a manipulation of public sentiment
into the villain of the tragedy On this topsy-
turvy basis with sensational journals pumping
mawkishness into the masses Of the public and
making a sane hearing difficult the case was
tried The judges were powerless to hold the
counsel TO the issue and keep out the welter
of sentimentalism The first trial ended in
disagreement after forty nine court days. The
second trial, year later, took twenty-Ono such
DAYS and ended in a verdict of insanity The
two trials cost the County Of New York $3G,GG6,
all Of that money and all of that time being
spent to determine whether the defendant was
sane or not for that was the sole question
really before the court. 1t would have taken
about one day to try the case if Thaw had not
been man Of wealth and his victim man Of
prominence-if they had been ordinary persons
and the harIot in the case had been an ordinary
streetwalker. It would not have taken more
than a week. as it was, in a community not In
the habit of occasionally making a Iavesty Of
criminal trials.
But the demoralizat ton Of justice did not end
with the trial The adjudged unatic has been
out of the asylum half the time since his COM
mitment and now his sanity is again to be
passed upon-with one to represent the in
terests of the state! Again there is a travesty.
We believe however, that Mr.. Jerome is right
in refusing to appear in WestcheStcr County
at the present habeas corpus proceedings. The
Judge has the option of sending the trial Of
such an issue to another county If the witnesses
reside there or if the interests Of Justice would
thus be best served, and the present case should
have been sent TO New York, where there is
money TO fight the Thaw money, where the
District Attorney is familiar with the case and
has time TO devote to- it, and where the judges
know its history. This is the only way the in
terests of justice can in the long run be effect
ualy served, for the squandering of the Thaw
fortune TO get that worthless degenerate free
will bring an endless series of habeas corpus
proceedings, and they will be held in remote
parts of the state unless the practice is 10 send
the issue to New York, where it can be properly
met ANY other course would in the end, be
playing into the hands of the Thaw counsel in
their efforts TO get their rich client out of the
tolls of the law.
Another favor to Thaw which provoked much
public discomfort was his transfer pending the
habeas corpus hearing to the Dutchess County
iail That resulted I'm scandalously luxurious
living and in large liberties inconsistent
with the proper treatment of a homicdal
maniac. Justice Mills who directed the trans
fer, had the option of sending him back to Mat
teawan. and there he should have gone. The
effect of removing him from the observation OF
the states aliensts there is that there is
unbia ssed evidence as to his mental condition
during these four months. If he had been in
ALstteawan, the physicians there could have tes-