The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1915-10-15
WOMAN OFFICIAL
SAYS 60 SLOWLY .
ON PROBAT|ONS
.... --- '' .
New York Commissioner OF Cor
rections Talks to Oakland
Convention
THINKS SUBJECTS SHOULD .
BE ABLE TO EARN LIVING
CritiCises Stern Handling OF
Criminals Before Prison
Association ra
(By Associated Press)


of the relationship between parole and
the institutions to which prisoners are
sentenced was given today by Rather
inc Bement Davis, Commissioner of
Corrections of New York, and chair
man o. the committee on probation and
parole in a report from the committee
to the convention of the American Pri-
son Association. r.-1. II
In the development Of the probation
system she recommended painstaking
investigation of the individual, that
the sentencing judge might have full
knowledge of the points which have a
bearing on the probatiOner. "A
"As n general proposition, she
said, emo offender should be placed on
probation, who is not in sufficiently
good physical condition to enable him
to earn his livelihood, unless the court
is assured that he has friends or rela-
tives eapal lie Of caring for him.
"No person should be placed on pro-
baton who is unfit by reason of feeble
ness or phychOpathic defects to control
his actions. -
juvenile System Suggested
She advocated the establishment Of
the clearing house system for adult Of
Tenders 70 establish their eligibility for
,probation,' similar to the system en-
ployed for Juvenile offenders in the
I chicago jtiSenfie court where careful
investigation Of the antecedents, en-
vironment and individual history Of
each child is tabulated.
Discussing the parole system, she
said:
"Both institutional care and parole
are methods adopted to train the in
dividual who has been anti social 30
that he may take his place as n law
abiding and self-suppOrting citizen. In
nv judgement the connect ctiOn between
institutional life and the succeeding
period of parole is organic. The Grim
inal having been convicted, it is the
business of the institution to train him
for his read iustment to society. The
parole is the period in which the test
of this training is made before the man
is finally placed on his own resources.
The report cOntrasted methods EN-
plOved in various prisons and the diff
ferCnt theories of prison management
ana the degree Of freedom permitted
the prisoner. OF the penal method
which involved sharp repression and
rules framed entirely by the prison Of
fcrrs she said:
"Thr difficulty of this system comes
in the ahrupt break between the life Of
the institution and the sudden free
dom which follows release. 1t seems to
many thoughtful reople that the hr"nk
down of the parole system comes larg"
L.. Of nf
ministratiOn.
Recommendations offered
SimpIifed court procedure in Grim
inal cases, determination of CONNER
ciulizcd crime and drastic penalties for
non enforcement of laws were among
the recommendations made to the Am
eri"an Prison Association today by its
standing committee of criminal law.
The report was delivered by James =.
GregOrv Judge of the criminal court OF
| Louisville. Kentucky. Four refOms pr"
viouily recommended were again en-
| phasizrd. These were:
| OD A wider discretion to courts in
dealing with criminals who by reason
I Of mental or physical deficiency SHOULD
not he held to the same degree of re-
spOnsibility as normal persons.
| (2) Simplifed pleadings in criminal
cases and adoption Of easy methods OF
amending such pleadings.
(3) Abolition of the requirement OF
al unanimous verdict by juries except
perhaps, in capital cases, and rontlnn-
nnce of trials when one juror becomes
disabled or disqualified.
(1 Legislation permitting, und"r
reasonable restrictions, compulsory re
turn of witnesses crossing a state lin"
and remaining beyond the jurisdiction
of trial court
'YOur committee is strongly i'm
Pressed with the growing importance of
adopting more effective measures for
the checking Of criminalizing intiu"n-
ces, - continued the report. Per
kups no reform in this direction wom'd
he more far reaching than one by which
rOmmercialiZed crime could be EXTERN
irated. There is no influence more per,
uiciOus than tolerance of practises sub,
,crsive and defiant of law, INDUCED n
hv those who finds such practises prot
table. Misdemeanors and crimes ar"
not infrequently committed openly be
cause the perpetratOr can either pay
the fine involved, and make comfort,
al Ie profit; or, by reason of debased
or drhaurhed law-enforring power
! safely calculate on escaping the penal.
ties announced by law