Evening star., 1953-06-12

NeSoCc W Vic POA11U WLlCIC HAL
accused of many crimes ulti-
mately was punished for only
one.
At Annual Conference.
The discussion on sentencing
was one of the principal fea-
lures of the 14th annual Judi
cial Conference of the District
of Columbia Circuit.
Attorney Charles B. Murray,
for many years an assistant
United States Attorney here,
said it would be a mistake for
the prosecutor to clutter up
the docketS with innumerable
cases and insist on following
through on all of them. He said
there should be sufficient cases
presented to illustrate the null
tiple pattern of crime and give
the court enough cases to as
sure adequate sentences.
Once a limited number of
cases are chosen, he said, the
prosecutors wish to carry them
through should be honored al
though some exceptions will
have to be made. That is just
about the policy Mr.. Rover an
nounced.
Desirable in Some Cases.
Mr.. Murray said consecutive
sentences were desirable where
the defendant has committed
numerous crimes but he did not
think this should be required by
law.
In opposing the mandatory
minimum sentences proposed in
the House-passed District crime
bill, Mr.. Murray said he did not
believe the situation in this COM
munity is so desperate that the
discretion of the judges should
be curbed.
Attorney Edward B. Williams
called Mr.. Rover's policy against
dismissals IAN administrative
procedure that would doom the
nolle PROSE- and dismissal and
be as Objectionable as wholesale
diSmissals.
Denies Soft Attitude.
On fixed minimum sentences,
Mr.. Williams said requiring the
judges to give certain sentences
was direct and dangerous en-
croachment by the legislature
on the judiciary" He said Con-
gress had been flooded with mis-
information about sentences
meted out here and it is not true
that judges of courts here are
softer in sentencing than their
colleagues in other jurisdictions.
There's no substitute" Mr..
Williams declared, "for free, un-
fettered and embarrassed dis
cretion by an honest, able judi
ciary."
Attorney George E. c. Hayes
declared that the bill barring
concurrent sentences was a "re-
Election on the bench" He also
did not approve of the policy of
following all cases through to
conviction or a plea of guilty.
AS for fixed minimum SEN
tenceS, he said they would rob
the bench of the right to put a
defendant on probation in a
borderline case.
Shared by Judges.
The opposition to fixed mini
mum sentences was apparently
shared by all the judges and at
torneys present since no one re-
sponded to the invitation to re-
flute the speakers.
Chief Judge Bolitha j. Laws
of the U. s. District Court
for the District of Colum-
bia expressed concern about the
effect of fixed minimum SEN
tences on the Youth Corrections
Authority and protested that
judges here would be singled out
and tied down more than their
colleagues throughout the Ma
ton.
Judge Henry A. Schweinhaut
said unfair sentence comparisons
were made by taking the mini
mum sentences meted out here
and comparing them with the
straight sentences meted out in
other Jurisdictions which do not
have the indeterminate sentence
law.
Differ on Jurors.
When the judicial conference
took up its other Subject-com-
penSation Of jurors - Judge
Schweinhaut and Attorney David
G. Bress differed as to whether
any problem exists in the obtain
ing Of competent juries.
Mr.. Bress saw a loss of sound,
intelligent" jurors Of the middle
class" excused on pleas of flnan-
cial hardship.
But Judge Schweinhaut said:
II just do not think we have
jury problem. I've had relatively
few excuses. BY and large you
are getting good jurors in this