The Washington times., 1929-04-19
GO EASY," j. s.
WARNS IN DRY
TRIALS
BY GEORGE n. HOLMES

Mrs. Mabel walker WinebEandtss
instructions to United States Dis.
trict Attorneys to be careful and
discreet in seeking to send prohibit
ton violators to prison for five years
under the Jones act. constitutes the
first official admission Washington
has made that IT is probably going
to be very difficult to apply the
drastic provisions of the act.
The prosecuting arm Of the Gov
ernment, keenly cognizant Of the
great hue and cry that went up
when it became known that it would
be possible to send a hip-flask toter
to Jail for five years, and fine him
SO 1000, has been studying the situa-
tion for SOM weeks.
Advice from district attorneys
throughout t! country has been
sought. They were asked to report
on their local conditions, the atti-
tude of judges, whether they
thought juries would convict under
the Jones act, and similar questions
designed to bring out a guiding
chart for the formul Ition of a gen.
eral policy. Mrs. Willebrandt's In
structions are tho result of that sur
vey.
To Be Rum Gar
"Only good strong cases involving
commercialism" should be brought
under the Jones section of the act,
Mrs. Willebrandt advised them.
All other cases, involving having 2
pint on the hip, or quart in the
house, home-brews for home con-
sumption, all these are to be prose-
cuted, if at all, under the old mis-
demeanor section of the act.
Your discretion in these mat
ters," said Mrs. sWiIlebrandt's let
ters, should be carefully exercised
with a view to the best interests OF
justice and the creation in the
public mind of a new confidence in
the effectiveness Of the new law
as an enforcement measure"
Mrs. Willebrandt, who is to be-
come the enforcement ''czar" Of
prohibition, after the bureau is
transferred from the Treasury to-
the Department of Justice, wass
actuated by three motives in advis-
ing District attorneys to "go easy"
/. The fear that universal appli-%
cation of the maximum penalties rf
the act will contribute materially to
the unpopularity of prohibition.
2. The fear that juries would BE
reluctant to convict under it. "A
jury might not hesitate to conviet
a yiolator of a misdemeanor, involY.
ing usually a fine, but it might
balk at convictiug for a felony, IN
volving a maximum OF five years
frnor vii
of citizenship in any case.
3. A desire TO win the first test
of the Jones law before the United
States Supreme Court.
Ready for Big Test
This last reason is considered hex
the prosecuting arm of the Govern
ment to be fairly important. s
Realizing that the first violator
convicted under the Jones act and
given the limit" probably will carry
the case to the Supreme Court Of
the United States for a test case
Mrs. Willebrandt wants to have
that test made on case that ~
as nearly foo1-proof as possible. q
She doesn'tf want to go befors
the highest tribunal with a case
that is not rock-ribbed from the
Governments point Of view.
She realizes that the decision uf
the Supreme Bench carries with II
a moral and psychological influence,
difficult to underestimate. She
wants that first decision to be for
the Government.
Meanwhile, the prohibition pot
was set to boiling merrily in Cons
gress today by Senator Cole BleaSA
Cd of South Carolina, the only
legislator who frankly and publicly.
admits that he drinks wet and
votes dry" Senator Blease says he
takes an occasional drink ''for him
SELF" but he votes dry "for hfB
constituents" ~ -