The Hawaiian gazette., 1914-11-20
JUVENILE COURT
|. SHOULD be GIVEN
. MORE AUTHORITY
Judge whitney, In Report TO As
ISOLATED Charities, Recon-
mends Drastic Legislation
IS 10 BETTER +.
CONDITIONS OF MINORS
Detention Homes Are Essential
and Adoption Law Needs
Revision Badly ... ]. s
L . O. q

\ il. +. 4 / l..
/ Where the powers Of the juvenile
court should be increased, and what ap
| propriations should be made by tn,
next legislature to provide funds for
the construction and maintenance Of de.
tention homes, for delinquent or de
pendant children, and children mental
| ly deficient, were outlined yesterday "a
the Legislative committee of the asso.
| ciated charities, when IL met in the Lii.
0rary of Hawaii building. ls
Judge William l.. Whitney Of the cir.
cult court, who presides over all cases
involving Juveniles, presented this out.
line in lengthy report. which was the
basis Of the discussion YESTERDAY. IL
win be taken up again December 2.
when proposed legislative bills on child
welfare will be received.
Urges New Adoption Law
In addition TO his Recommendation
for homes for Juveniles, he urged that
new adoption law be passed which
would give the court the power TO de-,
cree an adoption where parents have
deserted or abandoned child. He
would have also all sentences pro.
nounced on juveniles indeterminate.
At the meeting yesterday several re-
ports were received. The Humane So
eiety, the board Of health, through DR..
j. n. s. Pratt, the Free Kindergarten
and Children's Aid Association and the
Anti. Saloon league put in reports, but
the general discussion conferred around
Judge Whitney's.
The committee decided that next Wed.
nesday 1t would discuss the linemploy-
ed question, and receive Legislative
bills touching on It. The following
week II will be a conference on incur
ables, other than tubercular patients
and bills will be received. !, n s,f &
The committee Is working with the
aim of being already for the opening
Of the Legislature when all these pro
posed bills. approved by ii, may be i'm
troduced at once, and in plenty of time
to have them, given careful considera,
tiOn by the law makers, VA M =. y.
Judge Whitney's Report 49,
The following is Judge whitney. s
report: Z ] !st g. "a K. n
The following are the measures along
the lines Of which the Juvenile court
desires TO seek Legislation at the com
ing session Of our legislature. They
are submitted to this committed merely
as a basis for discussion. 1t will he
impossible to obtain legislation on al
the matters herein suggested, hut we
hope that some Of them will meet with
the approval Of the committee and be
brought forward by il. yE- Nf.
Juvenile Court Program "
/. Care of delinquent children.
2. Care of dependent children q
a.f - "a. ia,
deficient children. b,
Z. New adoption law. n
5. All sentences indeterminate.
Care Of Delinquent Children
The only means now employed for
the care Of delinquent children pend.
ing the hearing Of their cases and pend
ing the final disposition of the same is
either to dismiss the children to their
homes or take care Of them either, in
case Of boys, at the city Jail or police
station, Or, in the case OF. girls, at the
Industrial school, There are numerous
cases where the cases could be mneh
better handled II there were some place
to put the child while thescase is under
consideration. There are also numet-
ons cases among the boys where short
period Of detention would be an eff!
fcctive remedy AS now, situated, the
industrial school for boys, being forty
miles away, il is a practical impossibihty
to send boys there for a short period
Of detention. Such is not the purpose
of the institution and ii is not equipped
with the facilities for handling the
same. Much the same situation IS
found with the girls. Tho Girls In.
dUstrial School is not for the purposes
Of short detention; II is built on other
lines, and the facilities are not pres
ent for the easy handling Of such cases
without additional help. The only
practical method / can see Of handling
this class Of cases is some sort of an
institution, simple In character and not
large in dimensions, where few boys
and girls could be handled temporarily
that is, each case for say not over
month. The instltdtion should be
doublc--that is, with accommodations
for both boys and girls--and would
probably have to be handled by a man
and his wife. II would be impossible
for a man to handle both sexes, and
IL would be quite difiieult for a woman
| to handle some of the cases which
would 90 there. 1t might be possible
to find some structure now built which
would answer the purposes temporarily.
Two dormitories, each to accommodate
say twelve, with separate stairways
toilets and baths, would be necessary,
and il would be better to have sepa.
rate eating facilities, though that would
| perhaps not be absolutely necessary.
] eInnot see how any system of sub,
4 sid ding private institutions could take
the place of such an Institution, and
the detention would In some instances
in fact In most, be a'fofeiBle detention
Z II would be quite advisable TO have
these children within easy reach Of the
court, and II would therefore be neees
sary TO have this detention home with,
" ia the city limits.
Care Of Dependent children
This divides itself into the following
! branches: .r,., N. ,
I. Children for whom temporary
homes must be found. LAX,
! 2, Children for whom permanent