The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-03-23

those things have been called to the
 attention of MT. Batson in open court,
 the fact that there was being used in
 the jail to perform the service of turn
 key a man convicted of a grave of
 fense-performing the duties of the
 sheriff, however light those duties may
 be. He seemed to be convinced he had
 done wrong, and promise was made to
 correct this abuse.
 SYSTEM MUST BE ABOLISHED
 There is no question but that sys-
 tenn ought to be abolished. and it must
 be. If we cannot get it by any other
 means, we must get it by public opin-
 ion. Public opinion is stronger than
 any law, and public demands, in my
 Judgment, that never again in the his-
 tory of this county shall that county
 jail be operated in whole or in part
 by any man who is prisoner, either
 awaiting trial or having been tried
 and convicted. It is really an out
 rage on the public and must be
 changed). I know how easy it is
 to feel that things will slip back in
 the way they were before, in the same
 old rut. Such has been the experi-
 ence largely in the past, The system
 of officers charged with keeping the
 prisoners al operated is bad There
 must be radical change in the meth
 ods. We must have good men. We
 must have good officers. The present
 system permits public officers to do
 more than the law calls on them to
 do, only as far as it may benefit them
 selves. A public officer should be in
 there for the purpose of beneflting the
 public and the public alone.
 CLAIMING ATTENDANCE
 Now, 1t has come to my attention
 hot bo ri ir, rafa
 to witnesses claiming attendance in
 the courts. Oftentimes they do not
 actually attend court, but they come
 in later and prove their attendance.
 Oftentimes witnesses not on duty
 prove their attendance from their
 homes, although they are officers, and
 their duties require them to be in
 town, they prove attendance and five,
 10 or F miles,. Now, that is not the
 law and was not intended to be the
 law. It is not just, and it is not hon.
 est, and such practice should be
 stamped out as far as the power/ of
 the courts can be invoked
 He called attention of the grand jury b the fact that the Master was a man of peace and quiet, but when he found the temple in the hands of the money changers he scourged them with a whip of knotted cords, and stated that when ar official used his office for his own rather than the public interest, he should also be driven out.
 In reference to political appointment referred to by the grand jury Judge Fort stated that there were just as good men and true in Jefferson county as in any part of the country and decried the that all seekers for political office were bad.
 SUBJECT TO RIGID CENSURE
 In conclusion, Judge Fort said For he present sheriff of Jefferson county have always had the highest personal 'egard, but I feel that if he were my brother, he would be still subject to the same concern and rigid censure at your lands, and that he is receiving at the lands of the public.
 T understand that you desire to further consider the matter. Do so and go to he bottom of it and your service will be appreciated by the public"
 JURY'S FORMAL REPORT.
 The report of the grand jury follows: Honorable William E. Fort. Judge of the Circuit Court of the Tenth Judicial Circuit, Criminal Divison
 The grand jury deems it wise at this ime to report certain of it's findings, to- ,ether with recommendati tions and de- hands, with reference to the conduct of he sheriff's office, and especially the of the sheriff's duties, as he custodian of the county jail.
 The recent escape of seven white pris- 'ners, in the daytime, from the county all, and the general facts connected herewith are well known to your honor, md to the public. We shall set out, here liter, the pertinent findings of our body Il an investigation which was begun inn neditely after the escape of the prison- >rs, and which has not yet been fully completed. A number of different causes contributed their part toward the es- ,ape of these prisoners, all of which have been and are yet being seriously and cautiously considered by us. Further ac- ton will be taken as our finding here after justify.
 PRISONERS AS TRUSTEES"
 We wish, first, to direct attention to n the county jail for a long number of years, and which has recently been dis by other grand juries, which custom has placed prisoners, charged with and convicted of serious crimes as 'trusties," with various degrees of power and control over other prisoners. We find that this system has reached the point that prisoners, convicted of the most serious crimes, have been used as inside wardens, not only within easy ac- cess of the keys, but with actual cus- Lody thereof
 On last Tuesday morning. when the prisoners escaped, Wade Allen, serving a sentence in the county jail for man. peal pending in the supreme court after a conviction for murder in the second degree, were practically in control of the white and colored departments of the inside of the jail A number of ne- gro prisoners were being used as cooks. one of these negroes being charged with the offense of robbery Tony Malona, one of the prisoners who escaped and who had at the time, pending in the su- preme court his appeal from judgment him to death, was used as an inside trusty, in the white department, helping to carry breakfast to the white prisoners.
 BOUGHT BREAKFAST
 The custom of treating the trusties as and as on terms of equality with the regularly paid officials was of such age and so strongly engrafted upon the system that at the very time three cor demned murderers were planning and executing IHelf escape rom lHe 1dll, the inside warden, MT. w. R. Orr was talk Ing breakfast in the cell with Wade AL len, a trusty, and Tony Malona and Sam Macina which breakfast was paid for by the prisoners. It can, therefore be easily seen that the escape was pri- marily made possible by the system of relying upon prisoners. which trust would lull into a feeling of false security by the paid wardens charged with the re- sponsibilty of the custody of the pris- oners.
 CONDEMN SYSTEM
 The system of imposing any duty what soever upon prisoners with reference tc tha c,,stodv control and safety Of their