Arizona republican., 1913-07-14
CANNING TELLS
 OF FINLEY CASE
Says Will Go to Tucson to Oppose Release from Ben son Reform School of Eff teen-Ycar-Old Girl Com mitted from Phoenix

1 To oppose the release from the re
 form school at Benson, of Ethel Finley
 committed from Phoenix by Judge | Phillips and incidentally to attempt q
 | refutation Of the charge of the girls
 father that his daughter was railroad ed', Humane Officer J. w Canning will leave tomorrow for Tucson He will appear before Judge Cooper in the Su- perior court of Pima county, as wit 1 ness in the habeas corpus proceedings i brought by the girls father. W. II. Fin ] ley, the hearing of which is set for to- l morrow
 On Friday the habeas corpus pro 1 ceedings were instituted. Finley charg- i ing that Ethel, who is fifteen years old | and who was committed for incorrig- ibiIity was "railroaded by Judge Phil l lips, after having escaped five times | from the Florence Crittenton home in this city. He further claims he had no notice of the hearing and that the girl had no chance to offer evidence in her own behalf.
 Referring to the case MT. Canning said yesterday:
 Last February, Mrs. Finley. mother of Ethel Finley, called me to her house
 and said: I want my girls to go to the
 y
 yond my control and are keeping bad
 company. They are running around at
 night and staying out at all hours
 T turned to the girls, Ethel and her
 sister, and asked them if they wanted
 to go to the reform school and they said
 they did. Tn explanation the older girl
 said that they had gotten into bad com
 pany and could not keep away from it.
 She said that she thought it would be
 best if she and her sister went to the
 reform school and learned some occu-
 patton so that they could make d living
 for themselves.
 T arranged with the juvenile court
 to have a hearing. The court had had
 charge of the girls for some time and
 when the hearing was had before Judge
 Phillips. the girls were present with their mother When I had the talk with
 the girls and their mother at their house, the father was present. but took little or no part in the conversation The mother and the girls. in court, told Judge Phillips that they all felt it would be well if the girls were to go to the reform school. Judge Phillips ad- vised them against going to the school, saying that should be the place of last resort. However the mother and the girls still insisted on the girls going to the school.
 When the matter was brought to the l attention of the committee of the Ari- | zona Children's Home. q body compris- 1 ing twelve representatives of the diff | ferent religious organizations, that | body advised the court that it might be well to commit the girls to the Critten- ton Home. This was accordingly done n n Ti,,19 daughters to the home. delivering them to the matron herself. In about two weeks the two girls and two other girls ran away from the institution. The Finley girls went to their mother. I went with the other girls, back to the nome and Mrs. Finley brought her girls pack. Afterwards the elder girl was illoWed to stay with Mrs. Finley. Again tthel ran away and again Judge Phil ipS ordered her returned to the home.
 Finally Ethel again ran away with mother girl and went to rooming Iouse in town. The proprietor of the coming house notified Chief of Police \. J. Moore of their presence and the hief went and got the girls for me. One e f the girls finally appeared very pcni- ant and when the probation officer, E he asked to be allowed to go back to E le Crittenton home. She even agreed } go out herself and was permitted to O so. Ethel however, was defiant and aid she would rather go to Benson. Ter father upon one of the occasions her running away took the girl back the home and delivered her to the latrOn. He told her then that unless le obeyed the orders of the matrOn, le would be sent to the reform school.
 Finally when it was seen that it was E 0 use trying to keep her at the home, l et MT. and Mrs. Finley and several rel
 ives, with the probation officer and scussed the case and we tried to put 8 ar in charge of her relatives. The court the hearing from day to day IT several days and was finally ad- E sed by several interested parties that le best thing to do was to send her to
 e reform school. This he finally did though very reluctantly.
 All this talk about railrOading is # Olishness. The girl was given every )portunity to keep out of the school E