The Irish standard., 1915-04-17
WEEKLY PRESS SERVICE.

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WEEKLY PRESS SERVICE.
HOW THE COURTS CAN HELP DE-
LiNQUENTs.
Probationary Methods Of An Indian.
apoIis Judge.
1t is an accepted principle that "the
penal code shall be founded upon the
principles of reformation and not of
vindictive Justice"
Judge Collins was elected to the
city court of Indianapolis in 1909 and
served four years. He defines proba-
ton in a strict sense as "a judicial
system by which an offender against
penal law, instead of being pun
ished by sentence, is given an op-
portunity to reform himself under su-
pervision, and subject to conditions
imposed by the court, with the end in
view that If he shows evidence of be-
ing reformed no penalty for his Of
ense will be imposed"
The probation system inaugurated
in the city court of Indianapolis con-
templates the following:
The Suspended Sentence.
During the three years that this
plan has been in force, sentence has
been suspended in 574 cases and judy
ment withheld in 6,6S1. The majority
of these were first offenders. In those
cases where the judgment was sus-
pended the court has had to set aside
the suspension and commit the de-
PENDANTS in five cases, and where the
judgment has been withheld less than
2 per cent have been returned to court
for second or subsequent offense.
while there is no provision under
the law for the employment of paid
probation officers, adequate supervi-
sion in SIS cases was made by good
citizens who volunteered to serve in
that capacity. These probationers
were required to furnish the court a
monthly report signed by the proba-
ton officer.
Paying Fines on installments.
could you witness, as 1 have on
many Monday morning, the pitiable
scenes of wives and mothers and Sob
bling children, crowding the corridors
of the city court pleading with Of
ficers and attaches of the court to say
a word to the Judge in behalf of a
husband or father, you would then
understand the need of different sys-
stem of dealing with this class of peo-
pie. Much of their suffering came
from the assessment of the fines which
the defendant was unable to ray or re-
plevy. He was imprisoned not because
the court believed he should be impris-
oned, as there was no term of impris-
onment added, but because he was un-
able to pay the fine. In other words,
he was imprisoned for debt-a form
of punishment which was abolished in
this country many years ago. To reach
this situation and to aid this particu-
lar class plan was introduced for
the collection of money in small pay
ments to be applied on fines and costs.
I'm those cases where defendant
had others dependent upon him for
support he has been released on his
own recognizance and the case held
under advisement for thirty or sixty
days, as the circumstances seemed to
justify. At the expiration of which
time he was required to report to the
court that he had paid in the amount
designated as the fine and costs to be
entered against him. In the three
years that this plan has been in opera,
ton $27,410 has been paid in by pro-
bationers.
"This plan operates to the benefit
of the defendant in several ways. It
saves him his employment; it saves
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grace, as we'll as from the embarrass.
ment incident to Imprisonment; but
more than all, it saves him his self
respect. It has also resulted in re-
duction in the number of commitments
to the Jail and workhouse, which has
meant large saving in maintenance
to the county and an increase in
revenues Of the common school fund.
Drunkenness and the Pledge System.
mo unfortunates appeal more
strongly to the court than those hav-
ing the liquor habit. In all cases of
first offenders charged with being
drunk and in those cases where the
defendant had others dependent upon
him for support, the court has made it
condition on Withholding Judgment
or suspending the sentence that the
defendant take the pledge for period
varying from six months to one year.
Under this plan 302 persons have
taken the pledge and of this numhor