New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-11-10
Effect OF New Law.

Since May o. when the law went into
effect. llg cases have been brought 10
Special Sessions. Thirteen cases are
still pending OF the lOo cases DIS
posed of 1Ol have resulted in ConNic-
lions. The books Of Henry II. Sayer.
the District Attorneys chief clerk, ana
of Frank Smith. clerk Of Special Ses-
sions. show great falling off in the
cases in General Sessions and CORE
spending increase in the number IN
Special Sessions.
II took "A few weeks for the effect Of
the law To be felt In May no cases
we're brought To Special Sessions. In
June there were very few. In July the
number began 10 jump. and now IL Is
not uncommon TO have dozen on the
calendar in single day
Since the law went into effect there
have been thirty-one cases I'm General
Sessions. Three defendants were CON
victed of a felony. sixteen pleaded
guilty To a misdcmcanor. six were dis
charged and the other cases are still
pending.
The value Of the new law is evident
when these figures are compared with
those Of former years. In 1917 only
1O2- cases were brought in by the po-
lice. Fifty-onc defendants were ac-
quilted Under the new law IN SIX
months in Special Sessions and General
Sessions there have been III cases dis
posed of. resulting in 40 convictions.
Under the old law, which made the
sal, Of cocaine felony, but punished II
only by "A sentence Of one year or a
fine of 81 900 or both. the average sem
tcnce was about three months. The
shortncss of the sentence was due in
part To the fact that the defendant in
almost every case pleaded guilty. very
few convictions being obtained botore
a Jury. and in part To the fact that ne
had spent several weeks in the Tombs
awaiting trial
Most Of the sentences imposed 10y the
justices Of Special Sessions under the
new law have been for terms OF SIX
months or longer. Five men who were
arrested under circumstances furnish
ing moral proof that they were vend-
crs of the drug, although the precise
legal proof necessary for an indictment
for felony was lacking, were sem
fenced I'm Special Sessions TO one year
i'm the penitentiary and TO pay fine OF
500 each. Even with time off for good
behavior, that means two years. two
months and fifteen days apiece unless
they pay their fines.
Lived at SaIvationist Barracks.
only three men have been sentenced
in General Sessions under the pro-
,.ieions of the law which make the sale
of the drug "A felony. One was SEN
fenced 10 the Elmira Reformatory one
to a year in the penitentiary, and one,
who was convicted before Judge
Swann. got from one to seven years in
state prison.
IndI WAS w ~
bunked at the Salvation Army bar
racks and spent his evenings peddling
cocaine. The detectives who arrested
him watched him make two sales and
then bought quarters worth Of the
powder themselves from him. A grad
mated glass for measuring the drug
was found on him. as well as a number
of parcels OF cocaine and twenty-five
quarters.
The men arrested for the possession
of cocaine do not yet seem to realize
the power that the new law gives the
no,ice and the courts. Comparatively
few of them plead guilty in Special
Sessions. OF the 1Ol convicted there
less than a dozen pleaded guilty.
The police, however, evidently recog-
nize the possibilities in the law. Under
the old law they had TO prove a sale OF
cocaine. The possession of the drug
was merely presumptive evidence OF an
Continued on Hfth page, sixth column.