Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1912-01-23

practice by the better class Of Judges
In this country. These include In brief:
The Discourasement Of Appeals
In spite Of the fact that we have over
Ave hundred judges sitting on appel.
late courts In this country. n major.
ity Of these courts are behind their
dockets anywhere from ono to four
years. In Colorado l. find that there
were last spring $500 cases on tho
docket and decisions being rsodersd
at the rate Of about $50 per year. This
delay Is not the fault Of the laws nor
of the press of business. but Of the
customs and laziness Of the judges
themselves. have already noted sui.
fcient expert testimony as to this
from Judge Taft, Justice Moore. and
others.
But above all questions Of laxiness
or dilatoriness is the fact that appeals
pay. H. as in England, there were but
nineteen new trials granted out of .
total of million and half of civil
actions brought. there would not be
$4,000 appeal decisions in the United
States
Mania for Lengthy Decisions As
ono instance at random among
hundreds is a recent decision by Jus
tice Lamm Of the supreme court Of
Of Missouri cos Mo-. 1879. where.
in this learned jurist notes from
the bible. from Bret Harte. from
Thomas Paine, from Volney, and from
yoltaire, with a handful Of Shakespear.
can thrown in for good measure. And
this court is two to three years behind
its docket!
The opinion in the Standard Oil case
t.. 70
up 5O7 pages The Bell Telephone
case occupies q whole volume OF the
United States supreme court reports
5s4 pages.
There was famous decision by Jus
tice Scott, Of Missouri. that occupied
two lines On being reproached for It's
brevity, Justice Scott asked his critic
now much time he supposed its prep
aration had required. His critic did not
know.
Two weeks Of hard labor" was
Scott's curt reply
II this were a model for the $4,000
appellate decisions In 1910!
The Abandonment Of TechnicalitieS
CT Procedure-With bench and bar pro-
testing against this grotesque abuse.
1t still remains that Thousands OF cases
are reversed every year upon the most
trivial and imbecile technicalities. And
for every point that is frowned upon
as obviously raised for no other reason
than for delay and defeat Of Justice.
another seems to raise it's head. To
take but a single example: The New
York court Of appeals has set an ad-
mirable example within recent years
in declining to upset verdicts ana de.
chsions which manifestly have nothing
TO do with the merits OF the case And
yet this same court has recently (Peo.
pie VS.. Faber) held that failure to ask
the defendant on being sentenced II he
has any reason to offer why sentence
should not be pronounced Is a serious
error and constitutes a ,mietrial!
Consider now that this Is In 999 cases
out of 1000 the merest Formally. and
that probably in not one instance in
10000 does the defendant offer any
thing which in any wise changes the
verdict; and then that this venial slip
may upset the verdict in case that
may have cost the community thous.
ands and even hundreds OF thousands
Of dollars.
In 1896 to 1902 reversals in the New
York appellate court averaged about 80
per cent; in the last year 3,141 appeals
and more than 1000 reversals. Here
as everywhere the larger part OF these
reversals turned upon pure technicaE-
ties which did not concern the merits
Of the controversy In any way.
Enforced time saving in challenging
juror.-We have recently had fresh
example Of this uncomfortable abuse In
the trial just terminated 80 abruptly
in Los Angeles. Here nearly eight
IN ror3fPfynp tina
eight jurors. And yet the chief counsel
for the defense has admitted, in his
own defense, that he knew from last
March that his clients were guilty and
that he knew before the trial began
that the evidence for the prosecution
constituted an impregnable wall-that
the case was absolutely hopeless.
And the people of Los Angeles corin-
ty foot the bill
Now confront these facts with the
statement of Justice Brown, late Of the
supreme court, that in all his long
years Of service on the bench (before
his promotion) the impaneling Of
jury had never required or exceeded
three hours in any case. What one
| judge can do. all can do.
| The restraint Of abuses Of courtesy
Recently, in the supreme court OF
New York, in list Of forty cases, not
| one was ready for trial. In a severe
criticism of the lawyers, Justice Golf
pointed out that at the time there were
five parts Of this same court In New
York City, practically idle, with hum
dreds of cases upon the dockets, Tor
the same reason. Each of these fiyo
judges was costing the people Of New
] York s17.5oO yearly in salary. The. cases
| were largely accident cases." and fail
ures to appear, on the one side or the
other. were for one reason only, the
profit CT delay. 1t is almost unbeiiav-
/ able that judges who refuse to become
parties to this abuse could not effect
i a drastic reform.
In plain words, the evidence seems
clear that the scandal OF the laws de-
lays in America is due largely, II not
wholly, to the blind adherence Of the
judges to outworn rules and customs
which are utterly incapable Of coping
1 with modern conditions.
From a careful review Of n large
number Of criticisms by able judges
and reports Of the bar association4
committees. believe that the Judges,
and the judges alone. and unaided.
could do away with three -fifths, II NOT
four -fifths. Of these delays. Now.