Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1928-09-24
Multiplying the Eighteenth
Amendment

Those Texans Who are maintaining that Governor
Smith by signing the repeal Of the Mulins-GaEe Law
Of New York "nullified" the eighteenth amendment in
that state. should direct their attention closer home;
TO their own state, II they desire 70 see evidence o.
what might r~iEhtfully be termed notification.
The Texas suspended sentence law. which Is oper-
ating ss a preparatory school in crime and which Is
being invoked in scores Of liquor cases every day, Is
making enforcement Of the Dean law a farce.
In Cameron county, which prides itself upon the
manner in which the laws are enforced and which is
generally credited with being one Of the best gov
erned counties In the state. the record may be taken
Is ! fair index Of the manner IN which Texas multi
flies" the eighteenth amendmenet.
During the February term Of the criminal district
court there we're p liquor cases on the docket with
p defendants. For the September term there are five
cases with seven defendants. In the February term,
six defendants we're found not guilty, six received gen
itentiary sentences and nine were given suspended sen
fences. The remaining cases wers either dismissed Or
continued.
Governor Smith. in his message to the New York
assembly approving repeal Of the Mullins-GaEe law.
stated he approved repeal because the liquor law vio-
laticns would ne tried in the federal courts. and i'm
mediately upon repeal he instructed state police and
other officers 70 cooperate with federal Officers 70 the
fullest extent possible. The repeal placed the burden
upon the federal courts. They could no longer pass
the buck" 70 the state courts.
n Is rather significant that in Cameron county
where the number Of liquor cases in the district court
has dropped from 81 to 5 there will be a noticeable
increase in the number Of liquor cases dorkcted IN the
federal court for the December term. " il also rather
significant that deputy sheriffs and federal officers
are now hunting in pairs" and that on several occa-
sions in recent months deputy sheriffs and federal
Officers have co-operatsd in the capture Of liquor
runners and hootierEers and that few IL any % those
prisoners will be hailed before the state court. Two
weeks ago = cargo Of liquor and five prisoners were
captured by a federal officer and a deputy sheriff. On
the night Deputy Sheriff Horace Johnson wss shot
down BY a hootleEEer or rum runner two federal Of
5icers were with him. and Il is logical to presume that
in the event they effected . capture the prisoner or
prisoners would have been tried in the federal court.
No blame can attach 70 any officer for this pro-
cedurs. Deputy shcriffs 81 Texas are merely human.
They do not care 10 risk their lives to capture a boot
logger or liquor vendor who will be turned loose on a
suspended sentence when hailed before the district
court. They know he will AZ least receive some pun
ishment in the federal court. II may he a fine. II
the bootlegger is armed when captured. il may mean a
penitcntary sentence. However, il is certain he will
not he turned loose without punishment On a suspended
sentence, a. would probably Ne the case in the state
court.