The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1932-09-15

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States.
To the motorist the most confusing
feature of the States administration
of the motor vehicle laws is the
variety of procedures which may be
called upon to. face in the various
municipalities and counties. In Balti-
more City, of course, automobile cases
are a specialized function of a Traffic
Court and in some of the smaller
cities a single police magistrate is
designated to handle all cases of this
type. In most of the counties the Of
fender is brought before the nearest
justice of the peace, where his case is
heard and sentence imposed. In Mont
gomery and Queen Ann single police
magistrate sitting in the county seat
hears all cases originating within the
county. Prince George has a system
all it's own. There the defendant first
is brought before local justice of the
peace or magistrate who simply fixes
the bond or collateral and sets date
for trial. Then, at the date set, the
offender appears before a special
magistrate who rides a circuit of the
county holding courts at various GEN.
tiers for one day in each week.
Those familiar with their operation
point out serious defects in all Of
these county systems, In Mont
gomery and Queen Ann, for example,
the motorist may be put to serious
and unnecessary inconvenience if his
alleged offense has been committed in
remote corner of the county, for the
case must be heard at the county seat
and nowhere else. The charge also
has been made that in these two coun-
ties and in Prince George as we'll the
prevalent custom of requiring bond
has given rise to practices akin to the
"bonding rackets" familiar in some
courts of higher jurisdiction.
This objection does not exist in
those counties which permit the trial
of motor vehicle cases by the nearest
justice of the peace. Then the case
is handled with a minimum of red
tape and formality; but the latitude
of the law and the temperament of
the local judges result in many inc
qualities. AS an exmaple it may be
pointed out that in July two motor
lists were convicted of drunken driv-
| ing in Baltimore City and both were
given Jail sentences. In all the coun-
ties, for the same month, there were
| 131 convictions for this offense and
only eleven were sent to Jail. The
Baltimore Traffic Court has definite
policy in regard to such cases. The
offender knows, positively, that he
will be sent to Jail if he is convicted.
| On the same charge in the counties he
may receive either the minimum,
which is fine of $1O0, or the maxi
mum, which is $1,000 fine and year
in Jail. The fact that so many coun-
ty magistrates are satisfied to impose
the minimum penalty may explain the
fact that there were only two convic-
lions on this count in the city, as
against 131 in the counties, despite
the fact that the population of the
two divisions is approximately equal.
Purely from legal point of view
there are a number of observers who
object to the justices of the peace be-
cause the latter are, in most cases,
supported by the costs levied upon
persons convicted before them. Some
time ago this practice came to public
notice when the Attorney-General,
| at the instance of the Automobile
club, ruled that justices could not, un-
der the law, levy costs alone, without
fines, after plea of guilty. By this
practice some of the county justices
had been increasing their incomes il
legally, since the law makes the i'm
position Of both penalty and costs
mandatory when the defendant has
been found guilty. Those who have
criticized the "costs" system assert
that no judicial officer should be in a
position to profit by his own judicial
acts. In fact, some critics well versed
in the law have intimated that the
existing system, since it violates a
Fundamental principle of law, would
not stand up under the scrutiny of
higher courts.
Only in one or two small details
does the office of the Commissioner of
Motor Vehicles exert measure of
control over the local magistrates. 1t
can, under the law, and does in prac-
tice, act as a guardian of the receipts
of these minor courts. The magis-
trates and justices are required to
turn over all fines and an accounting
thereof to the commissioner and the
latter several times has been COM
PEELED to bring pressure to bear upon
those who have been tardy in making