The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1912-09-01
BY
Chas. o. Andrews

means many dollars loss and lessons
their chances of planting their crops
in due season.
In a county of this state a criminal
court sentenced one hundred and
twenty five violators of the law within
one year, a large per cent being felo-
MES, and seventy-five per cent of that
number plead guilty. An investigation
OF the circuit court records Of the
same county will disclose that this
number exceeds that sentenced in four
years by the circuit court next prior
to the establishing Of the criminal
court
EIGHT HAVE SUCH COURTS.
Eight counties of the state now have
criminal courts, namely: Escambia,
Walton, Duval, Volusia. Orange, Hills
borough, Dade and Monroe. It will be
seen by referring to the last census re-
port that these counties have a large
population. 1t therefore became neces-
sary to invoke a more prompt method
Of detecting and Furnishing crime in
these counties. The county solicitors
Of criminal courts have the lawful au-
thority to issue subpoenas for wit
nesses, upon whose evidence they may
base an information, the same as a
grand jury and they may investigate
and file informations for any offense
less than capital committed in the
county. He is by law required to be a
regular practicing attorney and there
fore by reason of such experience must
know whether or not the evidence be-
fore him upon any investigation is Of
such nature as to be legally pernissi-
BILE in evidence to prove the offense.
This court is by law held open for
pleas of guilty at all times, but IL the
accused desires trial by jury he has
only short time to wait for the Grim
inal court convenes in regular session
once every two months, thus the ac-
cused may realize the constitutional
guarantee of "a speedy trial by jury"
and the county pays less Jail board.
The violator of the law, in eighty cases
in the hundred, will plead guilty If he
has the opportunity when he is caught
fresh from the crime; but give him six
months in the county Jail waiting for
the grand jury to indicr him and then
six months additional to lie in the
county Jail without bail waiting for the
circuit court to convene to try his case,
and he may either make up enough
fraudulent defensive testimony Cor the
prosecuting witness may die) to cause
an acquittal, or he may have the
chance to escape. The county pays the
bill in either case.
About all citizens agree to this say
fng which has become an adage in
the study Of criminology-'It Is not
the severity of the punishment that
tends to prevent crime but it is its
absolute certainty and promptness." II
the crime could be punished legally,
the next day after the crime is COM
mitted, as is possible with the criminal
court, there would be but little reason
left to find fault with the courts.
England has courts of special GRIM
inal jurisdiction that may, If the case
is made ready, sit in trial the next
day or week after the offense is COM
mitted, even in murder cases. There
has been more murder cases in two
counties in Florida in the last twelve
months than in the kingdom Of Eng
land, and out of fifteen murderers
there tried, fourteen were executed.
1.-THE next article upon this subject
will point out, the practical efficiency
Of the criminal court as compared with
the grand jury method, also the matter
of cost to the state and county.1