The Alaska citizen., 1916-03-27
CHANCE NEEDED IN METHODS OF
 PROSECUTION
KANSAS GOVERNOR STARTS A CAMPAIGN TO PROTECT
 ALLEGED OFFENDERS

TOPEKA, Kan.-The biggest fight
 Kansas has on its hands for the next campaign is 10 protect the first offender from the activities of the present legal forces of the state Gov Arthur Capper has al ready started the campaign, and hc will insist that the next Legisla ture change the prosecuting system of the state or provide for a public defender for all alleged criminals
 The system has been changed entirely away from the old idea Of justice or the duties of a prosecut- ing officer" said the governor, The
 jury system was established on the belief that a man is innocent until he is proved guilty. This has been changed as far as the atti. tude of the prosecuting officers is concerned, until it reads A man is guilty until he is proved innocent. And the man must furnish this proof himself
 The change has come about through cur political system Prose cutting attorneys are elected to of tice ablf their record Their rec ord is the number of convictions. they secure during their first term. No one asks of the justice of these convictions. think few innocent men have been unjustly punished in Kansas, out there have been a good many men who were technically gull ty of a law violation where the punishment should have been nomi- nal or none at all.
 "A poor man gets into trouble It is his first offense He has no money or no friends The court the youngest attorney be fore the bar to defend this man The man doesn't know what to do His lawyer cannot give him good adv ice, while the prosecuting at torney given all the power Of the state to help him. digs up every thing and is able to use it in the trial
 "The prosecuting attorney should be the man who is supposed to give to the court the facts in the case Instead of that, he gives only the facts that will result in conyic tion. The prosecuting attorney, in stead of standing as buffer, a sort of proctor. before the court to see that the exact facts are pro duced and all the truth shown, acts as the attorney for the state and supplies only the facts that will allow him to win his case.
 Some lawyers have proposed a change in our criminal system. whereby the state has a prosecut- ing attorney to act as adviser to county officials and the courts. He is a sort of proctor for the court He should examine the evidence on both sides end submit it to the court and the jury. The party of tended against should have his own lawyer, just as in civil cases, and the accused should have his owr attorney. The prosecuting officer would see that all the facts were submitted by both sides and that exact justice was done. Many pros ecutions hide important evidence for an accused man, which, if pro duced, would result in an acquittal 0r at least only nominal punish ment for technical crime
 Other lawyers propose a public defender, chosen by the people and paid by the state to act for every accused person brought before the court He would be given the full power of the state to get material evidence for his client, the same as the prosecuting officer against the man. If the prisoner were able, he could hire additional attorneys, the same as men often do to help the state prosecute a man