Arizona republican., 1921-12-23
TEN CONNECTS WILL
 RECEIVE PAROLES AS
 YULET|DE SURPRISE

Ten prisoners were given paroles and four life termers had their sen tences commuted to 25 years at the good will toward men" meeting of the board of pardons and paroles yes terday.
 The action will come as Christ mas surprise to the men behind the bars. who were not advised that meeting was scheduled for yesterday This is the first time the present board has ever acted upon case when the prisoners did not make ap- pearances, it being the rule that eN- cry man set forth his claims for par don Or parole.
 The board, however, was thorough lv familiar with the cases and chose this method Of carrying on it's holiday meeting.
 J. o. Sexson. chairman of the board, said yesterday that the four prisoners
 whose terms of life Imprisonment for murder had been commuted to 20 years were all convicted on circum- stantiaI evidence. Their records since their commitment, according to the prison officials, had been of service to the institution and good conduct in general.
 .'The:r time can be further cut down by continued good behavior, said MT. SeXson in commenting upon the action of the board. Tn every instance that parole was granted we feel that we are giving the man 6 chance to become worth while citi-
 zen. and am confident that our faith will not be misplaced"
 MT. Sexson said that the board al- ways exercised care in the granting of paroles and that the percentage of parole viclatcrs in this state was less than g per cent.
 l The Y. NJ. c. A. secretary said that l in his years in service work he never i had felt that he had more opportunity l to do good than at the present time
 The chance to make real citizens
 holds wonderful possibilities to MT | Sexson, who finds interest in every | case that comes before him. MT. Sexson said it was not at al unusual for @ man to appear before the board who had a long sentence foi an offense for which another was
 committed to serve half the time.
 A uniform way of sentencing pris-
 oners should be adopted by the su-
 perior court judges, in the opinior
 of the member of the board of par ! dOnS ana paroles. WHO Ddu CdStS Dt-
 fore him at a recent meeting which
 convinced him this was a needed
 change.
 He referred to the man sent up fol 1 a year for forgery in the amount o1 | s5.50. The man forged the check, i developed, to secure medicine for hi: 1 child who was ill He has no friends but his story told to the board Wa! verified. No one, however. sough 1 his release. This case MT. SexSoI contrasted with that of a prisonel who admitted the theft of s20,000 anS was also convicted and sentenced tC serve year in the state penitentiary In this case, however, every effor is being made to secure a release The board has received as many a: 100 letters from influential friends O the prisoner. while petitions have been put in circulation in his behalf 1 While the courts of different coun- 1 ties gave the same sentence to these l two men similar action in the case: l will not be taken by the board, MT 1 Sexson promised.
 'It will not be long before the s5.5(
 man is granted a parole" he pre- dicted, while he held out no promise | of freedom for the s2O,00o convict.