Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-02-06
DRY TRIAL SCHEME
OF CRIME PROBERS
HIT AND DEFENDED
CONTINUED From First Page.)

| NNOHJlLlucQ HTOLu ElTbJ FHRG.J
missioners to hear prohibition cases was
being argued, the House was prepar-
ing to take up today the Williamson
bill to transfer to the Department OF
Justice the enforcement of prohibition
in accordance with one of the principal
recommendations of the commission
The bill is to come up under a special
rule allowing 4 hours of debate.
Representative Beck of Pennsylvania
has obtained leave to address the House
for an hour tomorrow on the subject
OF the commissions report and to reply
to the recent address of Representative
Franklin Fort of New Jersey, who held
among other things, that light wines
and beer could be made In the home
without law violation or with q slight
Qualification of the law. It is possible
that a vote on the transfer bill will not
be reached in the House until Saturday.
1t must wait today until the pending
amendment to the oleomargarine law
is disposed Of
Dean Pound, appearing before the
House judiciary subcommittee, delivered
legal argument, supporting the con-
Stitutionality of the proposal that
United States commissioners shall hear
cases of minor violation of the prohibi-
ton laws.
Senator Wagner summarized his OBJ
JectionS to the use of United States
commissioners to hear cases of dry law
violation as follows:
First. 1t sets up new and unheard-
OF category of crime which is both
felony and misdemeanor at one and the
same time.
Second. It confers upon a district
attorney the power to choose in each
case after the offenSe has been COM
mltted whether to regard it as q petty
misdemeanor or grave felony.
Ihlrd. 1t confers upon a district at
torney the power in each case when q
Jury Is demanded, after conviction for
petty mlsdemeanor, to change the ma
ture OF the offense and to proceed to
accuse the prisoner of a felony
Sees Constitutional Defect.
Fourth. The proposal is constitu-
tlonally defective because there is no
authority and no precedent for the
proposition that the jury may be denied
TO one who is accused of an offense
which may be either felony or a petty
mlSdemeanor, as the district attorney
decides.
Fifth. The violation of the prohibi-
ton law is not petty offense as the
term is used in the statutes and de-
clsionS. 1t is not true that the measure
of penalty alone determines whether
en- otense is petty or grave.
sixth. Trial before a commissioner
is, In fact, If not in legal fiction, trial
before separate unordained court, in
violation of article of the Constitution
and in violation of the law as inter-
preted by the United States Supreme
Court in Callan against Wilson.
seventh. II the commissioners court
Is not court and the commissioner Is
not judge, then the accused is de-
prlved OF his liberty by trial without
court, judge or jury. That is not due
process OF law guaranteed by the Con-
Stitution.
Eighth. The power of the district
attorney to reconvert the Identical OIL
tense from misdemeanor into felony
should the accused insist on trial by
Jury Is a power dangerous in fact and
reprehenSible in principle.
Ninth. The commissioner is not an
otncial of sufficient responsibility TO be
given the power proposed in This legls-
lation.
Tenth. Violations of the prohibition
law are peculiarly offenses which ought
to be tried by jury.
so far the commission has 3ppar-
emily attempted to cure the difficulties
of prohibition not by looking to the law
itself, but by eliminating as far as pos
sible the human agencies necessary In
the enforcement of the law. With all
due respect Mr.. President, ! say the
commission Is on the wrong track.
Report Exceedingly Disappointing"
1.-THE report that has thus far been
submitted has been exceedingly diSap-
pointing but as an incorrigible opti-
mist, / am still hopeful"
Pound said that a serious condition
existed in the Federal courts because
of the congestion.
He testified that bargain or cafe