The Daily Alaska empire., 1944-04-05
To M0dernize Justice
lWashington Postl


 Preparations for peace will remain dangerously inadequate in this country until Congress overhauls or hit-or-miss correctional system. Every war is followed by sharp upsurge of crime because men have been drilled in recklessness ruthlessness and contempt for life and property. We must be pre- pared to face the greatest crime wave in history when the present fighting ceases for the simple reason that this has generated greater ferocy than ever before and Il million Americans will have been con- ditioned to fight it. Considering the omnous warn ing inherent in this situation, how can the House and Senate Judiciary Subcommitees studying the bill to set up modern Federal correctional system justify their delay in reporting 1t out?
 Our present methods of dealing with law volators are shamefuly unjust and ineffective. While many improvements have been made in recent years, they have been piecemeal reforms They not created unified system capable of meting out justice, of retaining offenders who are not criminals at heart and of protecting society against habitua thugs and
 killers Sentences given by different courts for similar crimes have been scandalously unequal for no good reason The average sentence for liquor-law viola tions in Federal district, for example was found to be 10 times long as the average sentence for similar offenses in another district.
 Probably even more serious than this unequal justice under law however is the confusion of purpose which marks the treatment of individual offenders as they pass from agency to another for sentence, confinement and parole. Sometimes sentences are short to make rehabilitation of the individual impossble sometimes they so long
 
 that than half of the men and women sent to prison by the present crude methods are repeaers indicates how general is the failure of our correctional system or lack of system.
 The silver lining to this dark cloud over America is the fact that the eminent Committee on Punish ment for Crime appointed by the Judicial Conference of Senior Circuit Judges has brought in we'll rounded practical and might say, inspired pro- gram which has been translated into legislative form The bill would create board of corrections in the Department of Justice to cooperate with the courts in fitting custodal treatment to individual needs n- stead of fitting every offender Prosecution bed of punishment The board would thoroughly study the mental background and physical condition of every offender sentenced to more than one year and put it's expert judgment at the disposal of the court Yet it's judgment would supersede that of the court Judges would be required, when imposing sentencts of one year more to prescribe the maximum penalty permissible under the law. Then they would have an opportunity to change each sentence when full study of the individual had been completed Still the de- cision as to length of sentence dthe granting of probation would remain with the court.
 The court could commit youths under "A to a classification center where they would be studied and assigned to farms forestry camps to whatever type of custodal treatment might be deemed advisable. Or youthful offenders might be permitted to remain liberty under supervision These are not fanciful schemes They do not involve coddling, as the net result would be much longer sentences for dangerous criminals What the experts have done is to propose for Federal the most successful methods of treat now employed by the States and in various other countries The aim is to prevent crime by retaining offenders susceptible to treatment and at the same time to keep dangerous criminals where they belong And that aim is backed up by what is probably the most thoughtful and comprehensive correctional sys tenn designed for this country. It has the approval of the Chief Justice the Attorney General the American Bar Association, the American Law Institute and many other organizations. Why the delay, Congress, in putting it into effect?