The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1906-2016, 1912-02-06
: POSTING PLANS INSULT
GENT.


The newspapers of the state are
approving the suggestion that GOV
ernor Brown has just made with ref
erence to, applications for pardons.
The governor holds that the old
plan of simply posting notice of these
applications at the court house door
is not sufficient and proposes that
all such petitions be published in the
newspaper in which the Eheriffs
sales are printed, just as all legal ad-
vertisements are placed. That there
is something in the suggestion of
Governor Brown there can be no DOUBT
and discussing the question, the es-
teemed Americas Times Recorder
says:
| Governor Brown has taken the right
step in proposing that pardons should
not be granted without due publicity.
There have been many pardons grant
ed in the past Almost secietly A
shrewd lawyer backed up by some
politicians, has frequently succeeded
in getting man out of the peniten-
tiary before the community where he
com mitted his crime knew the par
don was being sought. All too often
! opposition to q pardon has been
avoided by process of gum shoeinG
on the part of those seeking elena
ency for convict.
Governor Brown believes that there
should be an end to this. He is right
He proposes that before a pardon
is granted, or the petition heard, The
fact that an application has been
made for pardon should be posted
at the county court house.
That is all right so far as it goes.
bit it does not go farenough. The
governor presumes that everybody
goes to the court house and reads
the notices posted there. AS a ma,
ter of fact at some seasons of the
year there are very few country poo
PIE who visit the court house or even
come to town. Posting at the court
house, therefore, does not necessar-
lily mean that the act that a pardon
was asked for would be known OF all
men in the county where the crime
was committed.
This is not the day of bill posing.
Gov. Brown realizes this. Nearly ey-
cry white man Of intelligence in any
county in Georgia takes the local pa
pei. Instead Of posting applications
for pardons at the court house, where
they may never Or may not be seen
it should be required by law that such
applications be made legal advertise
ments and published in the county
paper, so that every man in the coun-
ty will have full and equal oppor-
tunity to know what is going on.
This will enable the citizens, If they
are so inclined, to prepare a counter
protest and prevent the pardon il
there is sufficient reason why it
should be refused.
The day of quiet solicitation of sig
n.llt S TO IN application for a pardon
or a quiet trip to Atlanta, of a quiet
filing OF petition, of quiet hearing.
and the granting OF a pardon to the
| surprise, and very often to the dis
gust and Indignation, of right thinking
men in a county should cease forever.
Publicity will do it effectively. Coy.
! Brown is showing his good common
sense in this move, but he should go
/ further and make the reform thor
oughly effective while he is about it.
The application for the pardon should
be published, together with the names
OF The attorneys and OF the parties
signing the petition. That would put
the matter squarely before the peo-
pie most vitality interested, the peo-
pie in whose county the crime was
committed, and to whose county the
criminal will, in all likelihood, return
if he is pardoned.