The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-03-19
CHIEF GRANT ON DUTY.

|
In his talk before the Y. NJ. c.. A.
on Sunday Chief Grant called upon
the citizens of Salt Lake 10 report
violations of the law and help TO rem
edy the evils. He rejected the old con
temptuous sneer that so long prevailed
here in certain cases, that one does not
want to be ga spy and a spotter, ,"
and made his appeal on the broad ba-
sis of good citizenship and proper en-
forccment of the law. There is no
doubt but that in this Chief Grant is
on solid ground; he is entitled as an
officer Of the law to make that appeal
to the citizenship, and it is public
duty to respond Loyalty and lawfully
to that demand. From the standpoint
of the law and the ethics of the case,
there is absolutely nothing TO say on
any other line than in the direction
in which Chief Grant pointed his re.
marks. But
Under the present methods of court
procedure, the citizen is put at tre-
mendous disadvantage who obeys this
call. If he complains against one who
commits an offense, he has to make
formal complaint upon which a war
rant is issued, He appears to give his
| testimony, perhaps at great inconven
| ience 10 himself and some detriment
| to his business, only to be told that
the case is not ready for trial, and
| he is notified to appear at some future
hour or day, after perhaps waiting an
hour or two for the court to get to the
| case, A postponement or two in the
same line is likely to follow, and then
| when the case comes to trial. the citi
zen finds that he is the one who is
really on trial. He is badgered and
bullied by counsel for the offender, but
the accused is the gentleman whose
rights must not be infringed upon, and
who must be dealt with tenderly
throughoueN, Every doubt is construed
in favor Of the culprit, and every
and the witness appears before the
court as the one to be harshly dealt
with, The result is quite as likely
as any other way 10 be the acquittal
of the accused on the ground that no
corroborating evidence to the testimo
ny of the complaining witness is to be
had, and the net result is that the
good citizen who does his duty in
making the complaint is humiiated, bis
self-respeet invaded, he has put him
self to great inconvenience TO do his
duty as a good citizen IN the enforce
ment of the law, and all to no pur-
pose. Theoretically, Of course, that is
his duty; practically, in view of the
methods OF the courts, the citizen is
much averse to doing that duty, aud
he evades it wherever he can,
The great first thing to do is TO
simplify our court procedure, make
it more direct and conclusive, and give
the good citizen the credit for what
be does in place Of covering him with
calumny and insult for doing it, But
Of COURSE neither Chief Grant nor the
police are to blame for this, and the
chief must be upheld in requesting the
aid Of all good citizenship.
In England, as we are informed, a.
citizen, seeing an offender commit some
trespass upon the law, notifies the po-
lice at once; the transgressor is ar
rested; he is taken before q magis.
trste: the testimony is delivered; the
offender dealt with by the magistrate, |
and the whole matter is over in few
minutes. If we could have court prac
tice like that, where the citizen, in
undertaking to do his duty, would not
be put at such tremendous disadvan-
tage, there would be a far greater will |
lingness to undertake this plain duty
of citizenship, which is now almost uni
versally evaded for the reason stated!l
Still. Chief Grant is clearly within
his rights in calling upon the citizen
ship to support the police department.
This should be done, and it is the duty
OF every citizen 10 do 1T; even under
disadvantages it ought to be done
But with those disadvantages cleared
away, as we trust they may be some
day, the citizen S duty herein will be
made much less oDerous upon him, and
his self-respect will be strengthened in |
place Of abused, and as little of his
time taken as possible, in place of now
as much,
APTZONA cOuERNOP,S DIAN