Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-11-14
MURRAY
Continued From First Page

delay IN arrangement, but l
also feel that the police should
have a reasonable time in
which to investigate state
ments and denials Of guilt by
persons arrested on probable
cause, to insure that innocent
persons are not charged with
crime"
Going back to the Mallory
case, he said. "the Supreme
Courts decision, based on !
the Federal rules of procedure
IN criminal cases, interprets
Congress intention of without
unnecessary delay as no delay
at all except to confront the
accused with third parties for
quick verification of his story"
Suggests 10 Effects
He suggested the following
10 effects, which he said the
Mallory decision could have
mot only in this jurisdiction
but in others as well. :"
/. Admissible confessions, VOL
unfairly made. are excluded "by
reason of the time element
alone" in arraignment.
2. In a relatively short time
an untold number Of guilty per-
sons would go free.
8. Innocent persons in great
numbers would, of necessity,
have to be arraigned and the
stigma of a police record placed
against them.
4. The professional criminal.
or the one who plans his crime
SO there will be no witnesses,
will benefit greatly by the NAL
lory decision.
5. A criminal committing
multiple offenses will have to
be arraigned on the first offense
whether the most serious. or
not and all the others are
likely to go uncleared.
6. Multiple defendants in
many cases could not be prose-
cuted at all.
7. If criminals, who were
operating in other States. were
caught in the District and ar
raigned on the local charge,
there would likely be no clear
ance of the cases occurring in
other Jurisdictions.
8. State courts (by the score)
may comply with the Supreme
Courts views in the Mallory
case if legislation is not passed.
9. Persons making hoax"
confessions would have to be
arraigned, whereas with suffi-
Gent time to investigate, these
persons could be cleared.
10. Greater pressure will be
placed on investigative officers.
Chief Murray told the dele
gates that he, like several
members of Congress, have
expressed concern over pres
ent circumstances" and sug-
gested they be vigilant and lend
their support to remedial leg
islation when it appears that
that is the proper. course of
action"
Explains Jencks Case
An example of such action,
he said, followed the Supreme
Court decision in the JenckS
case. He gave the association
the following account of the
case:
1T was ruled that the de-
PENDANT could have the state
ments of Government wit
nesses.
Complying with this deci-
sion, our local courts neces-
sarily had to permit the de-
PENDANT to see these state
ments, including the notes Of
the arresting officers.
THE great danger with COM
plying with this rule was that
of divulging the names of per-
sons who had furnished con-
fidential information to law en-
forcement agencies, and there
by subjecting them to the posi-
bllity of serious bodily harm or
death or at least great mental
anguish.
"On representations made to
the Congress. however. the
broad latitude of this rule has
now been minimized by a statute
providing that such statements
may not be viewed by the de-
PENDANT until after the Gov
eminent witness has testified
and then only such portion as
relates to the witness testi-
mony," Chief Murray said.
Hits Insanity Pleas
He told the group there was
one other area in which en-
-