The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1929-03-21
BOOZE HIGHER,
HARD TO GET,
OFFICIALS SAY
Drastic Jones Law Throws
Fear Into BootIeggerS,
Deputy Asserts.
PENALTIES ARE HEAVY
Courts viii Give Strong
JoItS, Declaration of
District Attorney.

Liquor is harder to obtain and
more expensive in Indianapolis
since the Jones law, providing
drastic penalties for liquor viola
tons, went into effect, James c..
Browning, acting deputy dry adj
ministrator, said today.
1.-THE law las thrown a chill into
the bootleggers," he said. "They
know they can get five years and
$4,000 fine for the first oHense, ard
without a single prosecution thus
far under the law, which Became
effective March 2, it has had the
effect of slowing up activities of
bootleggers."
The law will result in heavier
penalties for all classes of violations,
George r. Jeffrey, new district at
torney, declared.
Regardless of the maximum PEN
atty, court always gives lesser Of
tenders less than the maximum, to
have an extra jolt left for the worst
offenders" Jeffrey explained.
Nllnlu1uIU Is CdmC
with maximum penalties in
creased to five years, a federal court
judge may increase greatly The SEN
tence for the average offender,
without making it so high that
there will be nothing extra for the
fragrant violator."
Minimum penalties remain the
same.
Under the Jones law, possession
and conspiracy are the only Of
lenses where the maximum penalty
is not increased to $4,000 and five
years.
Possession remains an offense
punishable with a maximum fine
of $500 and no sentence, for first
offense, while conspiracy penalty
remains unchanged, with a maxi
mum of two years and $4,000.
The new law probably will elm
mate the necessity of using the con-
spiracy statute SO frequently, JEFF
frey said.
Under the old law, maximum
penalty, on first offense, for manu-
Iacture and sale of liquor was
81 900 fine or six months or both,
with a fine of from 5000 to $4,000,
and Imprisonment from one month
to five years for second or Subse-
quent offense.
Penalties Go Higher
Transportation and possession
were punishable only, on first Of
tense, with a maximum fine OF 5000
and no Jail sentence, and on sec
ond offense q fine of from $500 to
81 900 and a maximum OF ninety
days, with a fine of not less than
$500. together with a sentence OF
from three months to two years, Tor
third offense.
Under the Jones act, manufac-
ture, sale, transportation, 1mporta-
ton and expectation are punishable
even on first offense with a maxi
mum fine of $4,000 and sentence OF
five years.
The bill makes provision for dis
elimination between degrees OF Of
fenses with the provision: 'Ihat II
is the intent of congress that the
courts, in imposing sentence here
under. should discriminate between
casual or slight violations, and ha-
bitual sales of intoxicating liquor,
or attempts to commercialize Vio-
lation of the law"
Will Relieve Juries
Under the new law, possession OF
LIQUOR will be the only charge on
which defendants can be prosecuted
on bills of information, in which
the defendant signs an afndavlt
against himself and receives his
sentence without awaiting grand
jury action. ,,,
The law permits filing of bill
of information Only on charges
where the maximum penalty pro-
vided is one year or less.
But few cases have been handlea
in this manner in federal court here,
but the district attorneys Office IS
understood to have arranged only
recently with the court to file more
such bills, in an effort to relieve the
grand jury of minor liquor cases
and permit it to spend more time
on other matters.