Cheraw chronicle. [volume] (Cheraw, S.C.) 1896-2005, 1916-04-06
WHIPPING CONVICTS is AGAINST
THE LAW

Attorney General Gives Opinion {,
State Board Of Charities and
| Corrections
Charleston; April 1.-Mr. William
L. Cantwell, supervisor of Charlesto,
county, has received the following
letter from Mr.. Albert 8. Johnstone
secretary Of the State board of che ri
Ties and corrections, regarding th.
Whipping Of convicts and other prison
ers and allowing time Off for good be
havior.
supervisor William p. Cantwell
Charleston, s. C.-Dear Sir: Tht
State board Of charities and correc
tions directs me to call your attention
to the laws Of this State and to the
Attorney Generals opinion thereon
with regard to two points: (1) whip.
ping convicts and other prisoners
| l2) Allowing tine for good behavior
CD Whipping convicts and other
prisoners. On January 81, 1910, we
asked the Attorney General as ia
whether or not it is lawful for con-
victs ON chain gangs in this Htste. on
convicted persons In any cls0 Of
penal institutions, to be whipped. and
referred him to Article 1, Section 10,
OF the Constitution Of 1896. He re-
piled as follows:
In reply thereto will say that this
section provides that excessive bail
shall not be required, nor excessive
fine imposed, nor cruel and unusual
punishments inflicted, nor shall any
witness be unreasonably detained.
Corporal punishment shall not be in
flicted. The power to punish for con.
tempt shall not in any case extend to
Imprisonment in the State Peniten-
tiary,'
The prohibition against the inflic-
tion ofcOrporal punishment extends,
i'll my opinion, not only to prohibiting
the Courts from sentencing a convict
to corporal punishment as was former
iy permitted years ago under some
OF our laws, but, in my opinion, this
prohibition extends also to convtcts
who are confined in the Penitentiary
uxNmgHsz1uU7II II II uu--
lawful to inflict corporal punishment
upon them.
1T is clear to my mind that if a
sentence of corporal punishment is un-
constitutional, as it is, certainly the
inflictiOn Of such punishment, without
sentence, would be unlawful
"The constitutional provision above
referred to will be found in Code of
Laws Of South Carolina Volume II,
page 602.
"(2) Time off for good behavior.
In some counties the practice has been
to allow one-twelfth off on convicts
sentence for good behavior, but the
law now is one-tenth (see Acts Of
1914, Act No. 352, page 617.) This one
tenth applies, in the Attorney Cen
erals opinion, to commuted sentences
He writes us under date Of February
10, 1916, as follows:
II am in receipt Of your Of the 9Th
instant, in which you ask, in case the
sentence Of a convict has been COM
muted to a shorter period, is the con-
vict entitled to &c. 10 per cent OF Of
the shorter period, the sentence to
which he has been committed, for good
behavior.
I'm reply thereto I viii say that
Section 1, Act No 352, Acts Of 1914,
provides that any person now or here
after serving a sentence imposed by
any Court of competent Jurisdiction
for six months or more, life sentence
excepted, either in the State Peniten-
tiary or county jail, or upon the pub
lie works of any county, shall be en-.
titled to have one-tenth Of such can
tence deducted at the end thereof 70.
good behavior.
"As a Communication is q reduction
or change Of the penalty imposed BY
n judicial sentence, the power OF
commutation acting on the original
sentence of the Court cuts down and
modifies that sentence, and to that e1.
tent the commuted sentence is, in my
opinion, the sentence imposed by the
Court In contemplation Of the Act re-
ferred to. am of the opinion that
for good behavior the convict is en-
titled to one-tenth off Of the commut
ed sentence under the Act referred
to-
1--WE trust that in SO far as your
practice may have been contrary T.
the above referred to laws Of thii
State you will modify your treatment
of your convicts and other prisoner
that the laws viii be carried out,
S.D a,,ll