The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-02-16
MIR. LANE REPLIES ID NESM|TH'S REMARKS The City Court Judges Gan
 Spare Time Better TO RELIEVE THE JAIL Says if Circuit Judges Should Organ- ize Grand Juries It Would Only
 Further Burden the
 Crowded Jail

In reference to the criticism made by
 Judge c. c. Nesmith Of his statement that something should be accomplished to relieve the crowded condition of the county jail, Judge A. o. Lane of the city commission issued the following inter-
 view yesterday:
 T note that in Judge Nesmith's reply to my interview he states that anything ] he might say would be valueless un- less he stated at the outset that I had ] done the city court judges an injustice' | It is well that he made this statement, | for I am sure that in my interview no | injustice was either intended or was done to any of the judges. His statement of injustice is a mere conclusion of his, and is not justified by anything in my inter- view.
 Judge Nesmth's statement is entirely beside the question Conceding it to be necessary to get the governors consent, how long would that take. and can 1t be doubted that such consent would read fly be given? The judge overooks the fact that was trying to outline a remedy for the evils existing, and to relieve tho jail of it's crowded condition It has never been contended that we have not grand juries enough and if one of the circuit judges were to organize a grand jury. it would only tend to put more prisoners Into the jail. Then the laity might well ask, why l. as one of the two clrcnit judges tthe other circuit judge | being too i'll to serve assiduously for a | long time), should abandon the civil dock | ct rather than that one of the four city | court judges should be transferred to the criminal court. Could not one out of four be spared better than one of two, espe- cially when one of those two (Judge Coleman) was In wretched health a large part of the time? The same or a similar statute did not apply to the circuit judges that applied to the city court judges. Judge Nesmith certainly overlooked this paragraph in my interview:
 Our jail I am told, is overcrowded with prisoners. This should not be, and 1t would not be if public sentiment could be aroused. as 1t is seemingly aroused al this time, to a strict enforcement of the laws. This requires work by the judges; ceaseless and relentless work dur ing court hours. do not refer to any one of the judges, and have no criticism to make of any of them, but I do say that the best energies of all the judges should be put forth to keep crime down. If judge finishes his docket during the day or at the beginning of the week, | and has nothing to do, he should call for the docket of his associate.'
 "Can anyone successfully dispute any proposition laid down in above quota tion? The fact Is that the overfowinS condition of our jail is a source of great expense to the state. to say nothing of the more regretful fact that many in-
 nocent people are kept cooped up, de- l prived of their liberty, and their fami-
 lies deprived of their work. One judge
 out of four city court judges could we'll
 be spared 10 help out the two criminal court judges --muoh better than one of
 the two circuit judges"