The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-09-11
SENTENCE DAY In
CRIMINAL COURT
JUDGE FORT CALLS ATTENTION TO
INJUSTICE OF HOLDING OVER
MIsDEMEANoR CASES FOR TRIAL
IN BIG COURTS

Yesterday was sentence day In the sec
ond division of the criminal court. where
non-Jury cases have been on trial dur
ing the first week of the session, and
some 20 prisoners convicted by Judge S.
f. Weaver were sentenced. Three ne
groes, convicted of violating the prohibi-
ton law, were each sentenced 20 days
and costs, and 10 negroes were given
light sentences for gaming.
Six of the negroes on trial for gaming
had been in the county jail awaiting
YER consequently made their sentences
light, imposing on each a sentence of
only five hours Imprisonment. They
we're released at the expiration of the
five hours yesterday afternoon at o'clock
after having spent AZ days and five hours
in Jail for an offense which calls for
a maximum punishment of only about 20
days Imprisonment.
There has been some talk of making
an arrangement between the county and
the city authorities to provide that mis-
demeanor cases of this sort be made
returnable to the recorders courts Of
Birmingham, especially those cases in
which the misdemeanor is committed
within the confines of Greater Birming-
ham. The expense to the county in keep
ing these petty Indicators in Jail all
summer until they can be tried as nom
jury cases in the criminal court would
be thus cut out entirely, while the city
of Birmingham would profit by the fines
to be collected. There are 1850 of such
cases on docket for the fall session.
Senior Criminal Judge William e. Fort.
in his charge to the grand jury on Sep
TENDER 5. stated that such cases, in his
Judgment, should be tried by less ex-
pensive courts, since the heavy costs in
the criminal court cause the law to be
Oppressive and intolerably burdensome to
these petty offenders"
The part of Judge Forts charge relat-
ing to the matter was as follows:
"I regret to say that our dockets are
encountered by a multitude of charges
against people for minor offenses, such
as abusive language, craps game delin-
quents, simple assaults and vagrancy.
These cases, in my judgment, should be
tried by a less expensive court, for the
costs alone In any of these cases is rare
ly less than $30 or $50, ana frequently
the costs run far higher This causes
the law to be oppressive and intolerably
burdensome to these petty offenders; and
there is no object of the law more sa-
cred than to protect the weak and friend
less from persecution and wrong.
"While l believe In vigorous prose-
cution of every man who willfully vio-
lates the law; yet frivolous and mer-
cenary arrests should never be tolerated.
There ought to be stern check on the
number of arrests In this county, and
some way provided to limit and control
the issuance of warrants on complaint
of irresponsible parties.
THE unbridled prosecution of petty Of
tenders in our higher courts. and the
wholesale arrests Of these alleged de-
linquents, costs the taxpayers of this
county many hundreds OF dollars every
year; and accomplish no proportionate
good while oftentimes they serve to ha-
rass and impoverish those least able to
bear the burden or protect themselves"