Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-10-22
Editors Letter Box
Names Adult
Penal Problem
The Kenncbec Journal:

The Kenncbec Journal:
In writing this article I am going
to touch upon the court system Of tho
State of Maine. the j2il problem and
the State penal institution problem for
adults and refrain from any mention
of the juvenile institutions which to
my mind are the best developed of any
of our correctional institutions.
Maine is a large State in area and
sparse in population. being composed
of 16 counties, some of which are
larger than our smaller states in the
Union. Consequently. it has been
difficult to educate the citizensto mod
ern ideas in the handling of our Grim
nal offenders.
Our Court system is made UP of a
Supreme judicial Court composed of
one Chief Justice and seven Associate
Justices who arc assigned to the
different counties to hold court at diff
ferent intervals and try out the Grim
inal and civil eases and sit as a law
court or court OF appeal at other
times. Besides these. four superior
judges are assigned to Androscoggin,
Penobscot, Kenrcbec and Cumberland
counties and sit for the trial of crimia
nal cases during certain months of the
year and work on civil cases during the
other months.
Besides the previously mentioned
courts there are the municipal and
trial justice courts that act mainly TO
find probable cause and bind over to
the higher courts.
The result of this system is most I'M
fair to the criminal offenders. as in
large number of cases it is not uncCm-
mon for person to be bound over, and
when unable to furnish bail. be re-
mandcd to Jail to await trial for from
one to six months according to the
county in which he committed the
crime even though he is willing to
plead guilty when brought before the
municipal or trial justice court. This
means a wait in Jail doing nothing in
the way of work or for his moral uplift
until the higher court sits and then
either get his sentence or so free. In
one county Of this State few years
back every case was disposed of with
out sentence at the high court because
the court felt that the long waits had
been sufficient punishment. | quite
agree with tho court in that the waits
of several months in idlencSs had
been sufficient punishment. but not
sufficient correction and believe that
the State did every one of those who
had been forced into period of idle
ness a very great injury and in no
way remedicd the evil of crime within
thCsn who had spent their time in Jail
in this manner.
From another county | received at
the State Ecform2tcry fer Men several
inmates who had awaited trial at from
two to nire months all of which time
had been spcnt in absolute idlcrcss
and when tho mon arrived 1T tho state
inst ,Nicl "a -
tiCn they were indeed sore and had lit
tie idea Of reformation. They con-
stitutod = '.~oblcm v2stlv more difficult
to hard!c then would have been tho
case if tIcy had Immediately gotten
their sentence to the Reformatory
when arrested for their crime and at a
time whom thy Wore somewhat re-
pcntant for what they had done and
DESTROYS OF listening to reason to rem
edy thn defect within them which
caused their difficulty. The aforesaid
cases arc only q few Of the great num-
hCr that are before us and there arc
Very few inmates received pr any of
the State institutions that have not
done several weeks or months of time
in Jail under forced idieaess while in
mary cases they have been sentenced
to these same iails many times before
being sert to the state institution ard
while under sentence in many cases
have been equally as idle as those
awaiting trial as the Jail has rot had
employment for them with no indus
tries. About Il week ago 7 visited tho
Iorl; county Jail at Alfred on a beau
tiful October afternoon and found 40
mon in jail lying about the corridors
doing absolutely nothing but talk
over their difficulties and swap stories.
There were just two out CT this num-
hcr who had interest enough to even
play game. or else there was but one
checker board in the Jail. as there was
but one game of checkers in progress.
which constituted the only energy of
thought that any of the 40 men were
doing. l was informed by the turn
key that they used to do some work
making heels for shoes hut that there
was nothing for any of the men to do
there at prcccnt nor had there been for
some. time and yet the court which had
just finished its tern: had sentenced
several young mon to this place for a
year of this enforced idlcness. What
has been said of this Jail is none the
less true of many of the other jails of
the State although some do have rock
piles and wood piles to work on
which at least keep the men from idle
ness. even though it may not benefit
them toward profitable livelihood
when their sentence is up. Lack of !
training has brought most of these
men into their trouble and laziness
has contributed much more, therefore. |
they should be trained at something |
that will benefit them.
According to the statistics furnished !
by the State Board of Charities and
Corrections there were during the year
~ two thousand seven hundred and |
prisoners confined in the |
]alis of the State at an average per !
capita cost of s13.05 per week to keep