Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-03-25
s'REPEATINC" PRISONERS
CREATE PUBLIC PROBLEM
Jail Is ''Home" to Increasing Number,
Causing Welfare Board to Plan Bill
for Presenting to Congress.

Take a single years record of c. C."
one of the oldest offenders. Last year
he was arrested for the first time
March 10. after what appears to have
been a three month effort to keep
straight. He went down for 60 days,
but for some reason or other was trans
ferred back to the District jail and dis
charged in q few days. March u, ne
was picked up again and went Gown
for 90 days. but somebody got nm out
by paying his fine. He remained at
liberty until June 7, when he was
sentenced to 100 days, Again SOMEBODY
paid his fine and he remained al
liberty until June S. when he went to
OccoquaH for 80 days.
He next is in the hands OF the police
on July 9 and is sentenced to 80 days.
His fine is paid after few weeks ana
he again is arrested on October 70
getting a sentence of 210 days. He Is
transferred from the WorkhouSe to the
District Jail and is out again in time
to get a sentence of 10 days December
Ii. He serves this sentence. but Is
picked up again two days after Christ
mas and goes down for 80 days. Again
somebody pays his fine and he is at
liberty until February 2, when he goes
down for 70 days, which he still is
serving.
73 Terms in Eight Years.
A typical example is w. j. M, 40
wears old, whose prison career. accord
ing to Mai. Peaks records, started on
July %, 1921, with Today sentence
for intoxication. Before the end OF the
year he had accumulated six other jail
sentences. During 1922 he was sent
to OccoQuan nine times, but he man
aged to crowd in IL sentences in 1923
and Is in 1924. The. next year ne
dropped back to II and since then ne
has worried along on 10 sentences a
year. He has a total of 70 terms.
d. NJ, colored, So years old, has only
90 sentences recorded against his name
since 1921, but he still is young man.
He made his best record in 1925, when
he went to Occoquan Is times There
were two 30-day sentences, four 2O-day.
one 25-day, two l5-day and SIX Today
terms, total of 215 days.
c. O.. 40 years old, has 10 sentences
recorded since 1921. His high-Water
mark was IS in 1928. He dropped back
to four in 1925, but has piled up from
eight to ten year since.
j. B. NJ, 90 years old, has piled up
IL sentences of from 10 to 80 days in
four years. E. r., A years old, in the
same length of time has 43 terms in
Occoquan against his name.
300 Counted in Race.
approximately 800 men have been in
Jail 10 or more times in the past five
years.
Some of the repeaters are women, such
as Mary W.. colored, with record of
80 sentences in five years, all for in
toxication. She made her best mark in
1924, when she went down Is times.
Mary j., white, runs her close second
with 80 sentences in four years.
Most OF the repeaters are gentle and
harmless men and women, who long
since have won the affection of the at
tendantS. Prisoners are not coddled at
Occoquan. They work hard and must
De strictly on their good behavior. but
they are fed we'll. housed comfortably,
and protected from themselves. There
are no walls to restrain them and no
oStenSible guards, but seldom indeed
does repeater make break for liber-
ty. Humane and fair treatment is the
rule.
In discussing his proposed bill. Judge
Doyle emphasized the helpless condi-
ton of men and women discharged in
without a cent and with
nobody having any further interest in
them until they have broken the law
again. Some of the repeaters eventual
ly CONT serious crimes. AS for the
chronic alcoholics who go down month
after month, Judge Doyle believes that
they are more in need of hospital treat
ment than sentences to Jail, and that
eventually society will adopt this way
OF dealing with them.