Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-12


telligence who, when released prove
to be ''repeaters"
This is one of the discoveries per-
tanning to the criminal mind and makeup made
In recent survey of 1000 male prisoners conn
mitted to the New Jersey State Prison in the
last three years. The survey, which was made
by the National Prison Emergency Committee
with the cooperation of the National Com
mtttee on Prisons and Prison Labor has lust
been completed and the results made public
py COL Joseph d. Sears, who had general
charge of it.
Col. Sears Is a member of the board of man
ayers of the New Jersey State Prison and vice
chairman Of the National Prison Emergency
Committee. New York City, which is engaged
in studying the criminal mind and the reor-
ganization Of the Nations prison administra-
ton.
Bigamists bootlesgers. forgers murderers
burglars and thieves were all studied anc clas-
sified and the devious workings Of their minds
traced and interpreted
{ <oI- SEARS revealed the results seated in
his ONCE surroundeG BY charts and sheets
Of figures. He said:
Our study developed four classes, into which
the individual prisoners were grouped. First
the difficult class composed of prisoners who
are recidivists, who have anti-social tendencies
or VINO are diagnosed as pSychopathics and
constitutional detectives. This class made IN
. Large percentage of the prison population and
requires close custody and close supervision
Then there was the better class made up
OF normal prisoners who are mentally and
physically able to be adjusted to society For
the purpose Of custody and training this class
has been divided into three groups: Prisoners
VINO because Of the type of crime committed or
the length of sentence require close custody
but are suitable for shop work and win prob
ably form the backbone of the prison shop
organization: those who are believed to be
stable and trustworthy and may be employed
at prison farms. road camps and so forth
where only limited security and supervision are
necessary. and young prisoners who are stable
and trustworthy, who have average intelligence
or better and are capable of accepting trade
training In various vacations at farms and
shops where only minimum security is neces-
Sary
"Borderifne feebIe-minded and simple feeble
minced which include high and low grade
moronS and high-grade imbeciles made I'D the
third general class. while the fourth class de-
veloped by the study Is composed OF aged or
senile, chronicaly i'll and the seriously crippled
This latter group may be segregated on farms
OF limited security where they may be required
to do more difficult work than their in
frmities will allow
1--WE found that 376 or SO per cent of those
studied in the survey. were below average in
teliigence. The study further showed that III
per cent Of the whole group have superior in
telligence, 6.8 per cent are high average, 1877
per cent are average, 1913 per cent low aver
age and the remainder, including inferior in
telligence, borderline cases and feeble-mindec
amounts to ST. per cent
Types Of crimes committed by unintelligent
prisoners differ from those of brighter minds
the survey revealed The relatively small group
of average or better than average inteIliaances
which constituted 3i.3 per cent of the whole
produced 333 per cent of the bigamists, 428
per cent Of the prohibition yiolators. ST per
cent Of the false preten6ers. 518 per cent of
the forgers and utterers and TIA per cent of
the embezz1ers
Men Of low intelligence are more often
guilty Of crimes Of violence. as Is shown by
the fact that the group Of those below average
intelligence. which constitutes 68.s per cent of