The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1914-06-25
COURT DECIDES
VS. STERILIzING
IOWA LAW IS uNcoNsTlTurIoN.
Al AND VOID.
THE DECISION is THE THIRD
Such Law Was Upheld by the Unit.
ed States Supreme Court Under
Different Circumstances and
Another Turned Down.

Keokuk, Iowa, June "a Holding
that the Iowa law for the, sterilization
of criminals is unconstitutional and
void because of the humiliation, the
degradation and the mental suffering"
which makes the punishment come
within the prescribed cruel and I'M
usual" clause of the federal constitu-
ton, and further because 1t is in the
nature of bill of attainder, fed.
,eral judges enjoin the members of the
state board of parole, Warden ]. C..
Sanders of the Fort Madison peniten-
tiary and DR.. Austin F. Philpott of
that institution from performing the
Operation of Vasectomy upon Rudolph
Davis. .......
The law passed by the legislature
of 1913 authorized the operation upon
idiots, feeble minded, drunkards, drug
fiends, epleptics, syphletics and NOR
al sexual perverts, and making such
an operation mandatory as to crimi-
mails twice convicted of a felony, is
declared absolutely null and void.
The case involving this law was
argued before Judges Smith McPher.
son of the Iowa federal court, John
c. Pollock of Kansas federal court
and Walter |. Smith of the circuit
court of appeals was heard several
weeks ago The opinion was filed
in the federal court at Keokuk this
morning. The main opinion, and
supplementary opinion in concur.
renee by Judge Smith, enter into the
questions at issue in considerable de-
tail.
The decision is the third to be rem
dered on a similar law in the United
States, such law having been upheld
by the Washington supreme court un.
der different circumstances than pre-
vailed here, and another declared I'M
constitutional in New Jersey. II is
the first decision ON such law by
a federal court.
Much stress is laid In the decision
on the cruelty and hardship of such
an operation, and the court points
out that the operation, and therefore
the prevention of any procreation,
would be mandatory on any person
twice convicted of a felony, regard
less of the character of the offense.
In Iowa, the court points out, not on
ly murder, arson, rape and similar Of
lenses are felOnies, but by special
statutes such crimes" as wife aban-
Comment, cutting electric light wires,
obstructing highways and unfasten-
ing a strap in harness are so class
ed
The law also comes within the pro.
hibition of bills of attainder, also, be-
cause the convict in prison or the in
mate of other institutions is deprived
of his civil right of entering in the
rnIn NJ khnrAfnrA
ished without the right of defending
himself against the charge, and with
absolutely no hearing in court. 1t is
suggested there might be doubt in
certain cases as to whether man
was serving his second term or a
previous term under the same name,
had been served by another of the
same true or assumed name; but this
fact would be determined by the pris-
on officials with no hearing given the
man.
The respects of the court to mod
ern eugenics are paid in this wise:
AS of course all persons concede
that it would be better for society If
some men did not beget children;
diseased, deformed, mentally weak
children and criminally inclined are
brought into the world, oftentimes TO
their own shame and against the in
terest of the public. But are they not
at the minimum:
And must the marriage relation be
formed under these newly conceived
laws based upon the brutalities of
many centuries since, and be allowed
to take the place of the marriage re-
lations fNfmed along true lines:
Must the marriage relation be based
and enforced by statute according TO
the teachings of the farmer in select
ing his male to be mated with certain
female animals only"