Evening star., 1925-08-07
An Encouragement to Criminals.

This country is suffering under a
prevalence of crime. Life is at dis
count. Property is taken by theft.
The securities of organized govern
ment are broken down by defiance and
resistance of the law which are but
slightly checked. Search for its cause
by citizens, alarmed at the prevalence
OF crime, leads TO numerous factors.
One is the failure of the law enforce
ment processes and the consequent
encouragement of the criminal to take
chances Delays in court processes
and the postponements of punishments
weaken the safeguards and incite
malefactors.
Yesterday jury in Chicago, which
city suffers perhaps more severely
than any other American community
from capital criminals. declared insane
a man who has been convicted of muir
der and sentenced TO death There
was no plea that the condemned man
was unbalanced when he killed his
victim in a hold-up enterprise. The
claim was that he had lost his mental
balance while in prison, chiefly through
the alterations of fear and hope
through which he had passed in con-
sequence of eleventh hour efforts by
his counsel to save him from the gal
lows. He will be confined in an asy-
lum for the remainder Of his days, un-
less he regains his sanity, in which
l 1,a ,rr;n -
doned by the governor.
1t is just such cases as this that
make for crime prevalence and dis
courage those who seek the correction
of the evil of promiscuous homicide
The law of the State is flouted and
clever counsel contrive to nullify the
judgment of the court. In this in
stance the plea of insanity was re-
futed by capable evidence and .sus-
tained only by the testimony of hired
experts and the arguments of attor-
neys for the defendant. The jury was
almost evenly divided on the first bal
lot. Sentimentality prevailed against
consideration of the public welfare.
1t is not a question whether this
miserable man should lose his life or
should spend the remainder Of his days
in confinement as insane. 1t Is wheth-
er the law which forbids the murder
of an innocent person, under penalty
of death, should be enforced. To the
potential criminal this disposition of
the case is a distinct encouragement.
The fact that Russell Scott has es-
capped the gallows after a series of
tricks will probably cost many lives in
Illinois.
The justification of capital punish
ment lies in its deterrent effect. The
present practice and tendency in the
courts is toward weakening this safe
guard by a mischievous mercy toward
the accused and convicted slayer. In
a case of proved criminality, where
there is no conceivable justification,
where the motive is gain or wanton
destruction, softness of judgment is an
incitement to the professional and
even the casual criminal.
1t matters not that in this case the
man remains under the shadow of the
gallows even while in asylum. To the
criminal class he stands as one saved
from the moose, one who has escaped
punishment, as one more slayer who
has lodged the law. For there is al
ways the possibility, and as the course
of things now runs, the probability of
pardon. While there is life there is
hope, and in the case Of murderer
hope means encouragement to others
to fiout the law.