The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1914-02-12
QUEER TWIST IN
CRIME REPORT
Sentencing Of Robinson at Fort Madl-
son Last Week Receives
Some Odd lnterpre-
tations.
REAL CRIME IGNORED
Judge Banks Letter to Jurlst Shows
How Small Error
Makes a
Change.
REAL CRIME IGNORED

One day recently s. s. Robinson,
colored, pleaded guilty at Fort Mad
ison, to the charge Of breaking and en-
tering the c., B. & O. depot at viele.
On this plea of guilty, Judge Bank,
then presiding at the district court,
sentenced him to a ten year indeter-
inmate sentence at the Anamosa pris-
on, or reformatory, that being the
course OF action prescribed by law.
The item has travelled considerably,
and In most instances Of repetition
that the technical charge to which the
negro had entered a plea of guilty
was robbery or in other words in.
dicating such. AS to the effect this
item produced there IL noted the fol-
lowing letter from Judge O. A. Calvirt
of the twenty-ninth judicial district OF
Missouri, under date of February 8:
Dear Judge: The enclosed slip was
taken from the Kansas City Journal
1t Is notices like this, which are be-
lieved by most people. that is largely
responsible for the cry against courts
and court procedure. / am at Butler
holding court, live at Clinton, Mo.
What are the facts?'
The enclosed item appeared under
the caption OF "Ten Years for "a
Cents and read as follows:
Fort Madison. Iowa, Feb. 2. Ten
years in the penitentiary for the
theft of seven twelve-cent railway
tickets and ten pennies was the sent
ence imposed in the district court
here today on s. s. Robinson, negro.
Robinson took the tickets and pen
mics from the Chicago, Burlington &
Quincy railroad office at viele, Iowa.
The theft was not discovered until he
was arrested for vagrancy at Marcel
inc, Mo-, and the tickets found in his
pockets"
Judge Bank Replies.
To this Judge Bank has replied as
follows:
my Dear Judge: have your en-
closed slip taken from the K. c. Jour
nal, and agree with you that It is no
tees like this, which are believed by
people, that is largely responsible Tor
the cry against courts and court pro-
cedure.
The facts In the case are simply
these: The defendant Robinson was
indicted by the grand jury for break
ing and entering the Chicago, Bur
lington & Quincy depot at viele, Iowa,
in the night time and, after appoint
ing an attorney to defend him, as
provided by the law of this state, the
defendant entered a plea of guilty.
Being under the age of thirty, he was
sentenced, not to the penitentiary,
but to the state reformatory, at Ana
mosa, Iowa. for term Of not to ex-
coed ten years, which, of course,
leaves his case in the hands OF the
board of parole. The law of this state
now provides for an indeterminate
sentence, and the judges have no pow
Ter to fix the term Of imprisonment in
the penitentiary nor the time to be
confined in the reformatory, but, UNI
der the law OF this state. the term cam
not exceed the maximum, which 10 ten
years. Therefore. the sentence pro
vides not to exceed ten years With
in short time however, after the
commitment the matter is taken up
by the board Of parole, and said board
all the circumstances and,
in many cases like the one In question,
discharges the prisoner from custody
and paroles him when deemed advis-
able in its Judgment, SO that the
sentence of the court does not mean
that the defendant will be required to
serve the full term.