The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-07-02
Decide This Case


Now comes the announcement that the
supreme court of Indiana will take vacation
until fall.
Vacations are presumably taken by those
who have become exhausted by work and
such close attention to routine as to have
lost zest in life and enthusiasm for their
labors.
The clogged condition of the docket in
the highest court suggests that the usual
reasons for vacations for public officials may
be missing and that vacations for this branch
of government may be more a matter OF
custom than of necessity.
There are a very large number OF cases
still undecided in which the speedy justice,
guaranteed by the Constitution, is denied or
at least subject to an unusual Interpretation
of the world speed.
There is no power to force the supreme
court to decide any case. The judges are be-
yond Impeachment and beyond control of any
other branch of the government. The only
recourse for the people, if they become dis
gusted with delays by courts, is the slow
process of replacing judges at elections with
others who may possibly be better able to
arrive at decisions of law.
There is one case on that docket in which
delay, even for the months Of vacation which
the Judges may decide they need, can only
bring all courts and all law into disrepute.
That is the case of one D. c. Stephenson,
now serving life sentence for murder. Be
cause of the vast power he once exercised
over the government of this state, his control
of a legislature and his influence with high
officials, the exposure of his close contacts
with those who held public office, decision
in his case is imperative.
His appeal was filed nearly four years
ago. The last pleading was filed in the case
on Jan. %, 1928. The oral argument before
the court was on April 80, 1928.
Rumors with great defniteness are cir
culated that the decision in this case has been
written for months, but not returned. The
Judges. of course, can not be held account
able for such rumors. But they can very
easily stop all conjecture as to reasons for
delav by announcing that they will postpone
vacations until that one case is decided.
Every citizen is entitled to a speedy decl-
sion in appeals, especially when he is IN
prison. If it should so happen that the
courts finally decide that such citizens are
illegally held, the state can not return to
prisoners the time they have served without
warrant of law If legally held, of course, the
prisoner loses nothing.
A decision in the Stephenson case would
end the gossip and rumor as to reasons for
delay. 1t may be that the judges have found
such intricate questions of law as to be I'M
able to reach conclusion. 1t may be that
they have discovered such finely balanced
matters of evidence as to make it difficult for
them to decide.
But public interest, directed definitely to
the preservation of confidence in courts and
a general trust that the highest court is only
influenced by considerations of exact justice,
does demand that some decision be made
Instead of vacation for the high court,
why not three months exclusive study of
the case of Stephenson, if it takes that long
for the judges to make up their minds as to
the legality of his life sentence?