The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1910-09-05
EIGHT HUNDRED
RELEASED YEARLY
ON PAROLE OR PARDON FROM
PENlTENTiARlES IN STATE
OF ILLINOIS.
HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS
All Prisoners, Except For Certain
offenses, Get Chance to be Re-
leased at End Of the
First Year.

Springfield, ILL.,, sept 4.--Cohtrary
to the belief OF many persons unac.
quainted with parole board procedure
prisoner who has served a term IN
the penitentiary, and for whom a pa
role Is desired, does not require APPS.
tition to get before the Illinois boarI
of pardons.
Under the Illinois statute, except
for crimes of murder, rape, kidnapping
or treason, man OF 2l or over, or
woman is or over, when convicted, is
sentenced "indeterminatel, When a
prisoner has served IL months, and
Ills serving his first term, and has dur
ing that time obeyed the rules OF the
prison, he comes before the board of
pardons to be examined for parole,
no formal petition is necessary an
no advertising is required. He comes
before the board entirely automatic
ally.
Under the Illinois parole law the
board of pardons, which acts as a pa
role board, is given considerable
range in making rules. So far as
prisoners are concerned, whoever ap-
plies for parole, when he automatic.
ally comes before the board, the aim
of the rules Is to establish whether
he Is rightly entitled to such parole.
Before prisoner VIII be parolcd
the board must be satisfied that he
is DESTROYS Of leading better life AMI
that society will not be injured by
his release. The board takes into
consideration the crime for which he
has been imprisoned, his past life.
the probability of his never again
violating the law, the adequacy Of
the punishment, his prison conduct
and any other matter which may ap,
peal to the board as bearing upon the
prisoners welfare
The prisoner who seeks his release
under the provisions of the parole
law and indeterminate sentence act
must then furnish names of reputable
business and professional men who
knew him before his conviction who
can attest to the prisoners good
character.
When the board OF pardons has re.
viewed all the evidence it passes
upon the advlsability Of granting tie
prisoner a parole. Then, acting In
the capacity of a board of parole, If
1t seems good reason why the pa.
role should not be granted, the case
is set back. If there Is nothing In
the way of parole, the board pro.
ceeds at once to draw up the neces-
sary papers.
A rarole order, as a decree for a
parol%is termed, is frawn up In trir.
licate. Agreements which go with
the parole are similarly drawn up
One copy is sent to tne warden of
the penitentiary In which the prisoner
has been confined, another to the
prisoner himself, and third to tn 2
man to whom the prisoner is parolei,
Or who binds himself to give the
prisoner employment. The warden OF
the prison In which the prisoner was
an inmate is held responsible for the
mans employment.
A prisoner who has thus escaped
the prison walls and who Is conparr.
lively a free man, must report month.
ly TO the warden relative to his pro
gress and employment. At the end
of twelve months II all reports ar,
satisfactory, the prisoner is given d
full discharge and Is absolutely and
legally free.
II will be seen that by such process.
the prisoner. sent to the penitentiary
for crime for which definite sen.
tence might prescribe term OF sew,
eral years, may again become free
citizen within less than two years
frequently, II his records show we'll
The board Of pardons. In conformity
with the statute, has ruled that .
prisoner who has had criminal rec
ord when he is imprisoned In Illinois
cannot get off so easily. For every
prison record he has elsewhere ths
time at which he may appear for pa
role is heightened one year For IN
stance, II prisoner has been In
prison twice before his conviction In
Illinois, he must spend two year:
after the original eleven months In
Prison before rotation brings him be
| fore the board The appearance Is nc
less automatic, however
The number who are paroIed eaS-
year varies. but according to the best
averages II will approximate probably
500, from both Illinois prisons. The
/ prisons at Joliet and Chester con.
tribute about the same number 81