Evening star., 1928-06-05
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL J.. COLLINS.

A subcommittee of the National Crime
Commission. headed by Newton ID. Baker.
which was appointed at the conference
of the commission I'm Washington last
November, has issued a preliminary re-
port of It's Investigations in the crime
wave" and court procedure OF the
United States.
While ii makes no pretense Of hav-
ing found solution of the problem o.
how 70 check crime In general, II makes
some pertinent observations. Among
these is the citing of the growing abuse
of the insanity claim in criminal cases.
and the evil of permitting the question
OF sanity to be submitted to Jury
of laymen. unversed in the technique
of mental diseases.
It's recommendation is that there
should be committee or jury oA eN-
perts in mental diseases 10 consider the
question of sanity before the case is
tried on its general merits, and then
the regular Jury should be bound by the
verdict of the Jury on mental response
bility. Just as II is bound in matters OF
law by the court,
AT present II is the custom. when
sanity is questioned, for both the oe-
tense and prosecution to employ eN-
merits" and for the experts TO differ,
utter confusion, or leave 1t open 10 un-
due influences of the eloquent gentle
men at the bar. The proposal to em-
ploy a special Jury on only the mental
condition OF the defendant would nos
change the practice Of each sides en-
blowing It's own expert witnesses, out
The experts would be heard, not hy uh~
informed iurymen. but, SO lar as pos
sible. by iury of experts, or at least
of men TO whom sanity or insanity Is
not mystery.
Quoting from a Massachusetts, pSychi-
ARTIST DR., Winfrad oeerholser. director
OF the division for the examination OF
prisoners, and assistant professor OF
psychlatry. Boston University Schocl OF
Medicine;
"The intent OF the common law 20 be
fair In this matter is clear, and mas
been enacted into statutes IN many
Jurisdictions. The method OF ussel
mining the matter of the defendant
sanity is sometimes lett to the jury IN
a special proceeding, Inc
diagnosis Of mental disorder. IN other
words, is made by one tor many
unfamiliar with medical OF psychological
matters So much attention
has been attracted 10 eases III which
this was done. that. in certain turlsdic~
tions. there has been legislation de-
signed to limit the use OF this procedure,
in some non-legal quarters, even. We
have heard suggestions that the plea ot
insanity as a defense TO crime should
BE- abolished Such abolition. of course,
Is unthinkahle. but the mere fact that
It can be suggested raises question
as to what defect exists IN our system
SAAffl ina
= y y
In the last legislative year the state
Legislatures considered 226i bills re-
lating 10 court procedure or amendments
to penal codes, OF these they passed
approximately one~tourth of all bills
preSenteS~a high ratio Ii is claimed
that there We're no bills which should
he claSSed AS fool legislation but pEac~
tiCaly all tendca 90 facilitate CouNic-
lions aud t0 add 10 the mproitahleneSS
of crime, The RaumeS law OF New
YORK is taken as the standard of sever
ity IN dealing With hahltual criminals
in that II greatly Increases penalties for
the second aud Aird oaeuSes amt makes
mandatory lite Imprisonment Tor the
fourth penal oifense,
~, y =
Among freak measures et the wear
appear laws in seven states 10 make the
theft ag il chicken grand larceny, and
In tdahn to prohibit the purchase et any
fowls between sunset and sunrise Wsths
out FIRST notifying The sheriff Missouri
also made II grand larceny 10 steal u
dog They 'gotta Quit klcsM' my houn
aroun" In Missouri
In Nerth Dakota the legislature, not
being too hard. boiled reduoed the pene
altS. for selling snuii "a minors bat %
oliavt that itnieney, Ia New Mexico a
bill was introduced 10 make It crime
tor svhaal teacher IA own ar operate
poollaan. aa the lluerty of the pros
etful drama biography, history that