The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
BATSON QUESTIONED .ON MANY MATTERS BEFORE COMMITTEE Opposes Proposal to Have Board Feed Prisoners
 in Jail JUDGE ABERNETHY
 GROWS PERSONAL Makes Pointed Reference to Repre- sentative Copeland-Advocates In- creased Jurisdiction for Com
 mon Pleas Court

 enue taking in charge the county jaii and feeding the>prisoners was among tho questions asked a number of wit nesses. Sheriff Batson included. at tho hearing that Is being held at the Mol ton hotel by the legislative recess committee on judiciary reform Sheriff Ratson entered decided objections to the proposed change.
 Investigations will be N made this morning by committee on the matter of the county paying the salaries of bailiffs who work almost entirely for the clerks of the several courts of the county and the bailiffs who attend the sessions of the court and who are required to work for the sheriff.
 The attention of the committee was called to the fact that bailiffs paid by the county were holding dual positions and that the clerks and the sheriff were the beneficiaries thereby. This matter was brought about by the state ment of Sheriff Thomas J. Batson. who said yesterday afternoon to the com mittee in answer to the question by Senator Lusk that he paid his deputies and bailiffs from 5000 to $500 8 year for their services.
 Sheriff Batson appeared before the committee yesterday afternoon and was closely questioned as to tho emol- uments of his office and particularly to the cost of feeding the prisoners in the county jail. The sheriff stated that he had not been in office long tn af se item of costs but that he would be glad to furnish the committee a state ment at a later date after he had checked up his bills for food furnished the prisoners.
 Asked as to the payment of deputies he stated a good deputy could be had for about S150 a month and that he paid his deputies and bailiffs from 5000 to S1sO0 year.
 Furnished Lists of Jurors
 Sheriff Batson stated in answer to a question that while on the jury com mission he had been furnished with lists stating who would make good jurors or who would not.
 Did not these lists come from cor poration attorneys?" asked Colonel John. Yes. sir: in some instances they did" The sheriff stated that the com Gnisison employed a clerk who fur nished the names of the prospective jurors in each beat and that the con- mission passed on their qualifications. He stated that the names of the two ladies who had been summoned for jury duty while he was a commission CT had been passed on by his associates and that personally he was mot gull ty."
 When aske das to the amount of salary the sheriff should receive in the event the fee system was abolished MT. Batson stated that he had not been in office long enough to form reasonable opinion. He stated, how ever, that one of his predecessors stated that the office did not pay $75.- GOO for the term.
 The committee reconvened yester- day morning at 9 o'clock with Senator John A. Lusk chairman. Witnesses were slow in appearing which called for a request from the chairman that all the witnesses voluntary and oth erwise who had business before the committee would appear promptly this morning at the specified time m or der that the work of the committee might be expedited. Among the wit nesses appearing yesterday afternoon were Judge J. P. Stiles of the probate
 
 Batson, Ed Newman and Judge Dan q. Green. The examination of Sher- if Batson proved of special interest and led to an investigation of the bailiff system as practiced in this county.
 Judge J. P. Stiles of the probate court and Judge J. J. Banks testified In ref erence to court procedure. Sheriff Bat son and Ed Newman testified as to the sheriffs office and Judge Dan Green gave his opinions on the reform of ju- dicial procedure. Judg Green stated that in his opinion it would be a mis- take to include the criminal court in the proposed consolidated court bill and that he believed the best Interest of the county and state would be served by keeping the criminal court as it is at present. He stated that if the inferior courts of the county were given Jurisdiction over misdemeanor cases that the congestion of the crim- inal court would soon be relieved. He said there was much delay in the trial of criminal cases by the lack of serv- ice on the part of the sheriff and the delay of the lawyers in preparing their criminal cases. In answer to questions he stated the judges of the court him self included, were not sufficiently in- sistent on the prompt attendance of the attorneys and the proper service on the part of the sheriff.
 Letter From Oberdorfer
 The first business of the committee yesterday morning was the reading of letter from Leo Oberdorfer offering suggestions on judicial reform He suggested that the congestion of tho criminal court was the result of poor system of instituting and prosecuting misdemeanor cases. He recommended the service of a summons on tho de- lfendant in minor cases to appear be- 1ore the magistrate on given date and that the prosecution of warrants of arrest could only be instituted by the consent of the solicitor. He favored the consolidation of the courts of the county and the granting of increased Jurisdiction in the inferior courts. also the taking of oral testimony before the chancellor
 Judge H. B. Abernethy of the court of common pleas proved an interesting witness He stated that he had pre- scented a bill to the present legisla- ture giving increased Jurisdiction to the court of common pleas but that the bill was opposed because 1t was assert ed by Legislator R. D. Copeland that 1t would take money out of the peck : ct of the clerk of the criminal court, who was his brother. Before givin 2 his testimony Judge Abernethy asked that R. D. Copeland and w. s. Welch, members of the legislature, be pres ent to hear his statements in ragai q to the alleged blocking of the bill lie stated that the average costs in mis- demeanor cases tried in the criminal court was about $37 and that the costs l.