The Delinquent (Vol. IV, No. 4), April, 1914 — John Shaqi
The Delinquent (Vol. IV, No. 4), April, 1914Various
General
The Delinquent (Vol. IV, No. 4), April, 1914
Various
Prisons -- Periodicals
It has been agreed to make a test case to determine the status of the
parole law of 1904, which Attorney-General Pollard has held to be
unconstitutional.
* * * * *
_In Kentucky._--The Louisville Post says editorially that:
“In no department of the State government has there been progress
made in the last two years comparable to that shown in the
administration of the Kentucky penitentiaries, and Governor McCreary
deserves liberal commendation for the wisdom he manifested in
selecting the members of the board--Messrs. O’Sullivan, Conley
and Lawrence--and the firmness he has shown in supporting his
appointees. This is the one bright spot in our State government and
the improvement made will be valuable in the future outside of the
progress in prison administration by the standard it holds up for
other departments of the State.”
Prison Commissioner O’Sullivan has thus summarized the recent
developments:
“The most important act passed by the last General Assembly affecting
the prisons was the bill providing for State aid in the building of
county roads. While it makes no reference to the penal institutions,
the opportunity it presents is providential. On January 1, 1915, the
contracts on the labor of at least 900 prisoners will expire. In the
face of the adverse legislation in Congress, it is probable that the
prison contractors will not again bid for this labor, even if the
Prison Commissioners were inclined to make new contracts.
“The law permitting the Prison Commission to lease farms adjacent
to the prisons at Frankfort and Eddyville is of inestimable value.
These farms can not only be made self-sustaining, but the tubercular
prisoners can be transferred there and given the chance for life which
is sometimes denied them in the narrow confines of a prison cell.
“The indeterminate sentence law does away with the automatic parole of
prisoners and gives the jury the power to fix a minimum and maximum
sentence proportionate to the crime committed.
“The passage of a law limiting the age of children sent to the House of
Reform, near Lexington, and making the county pay part of the cost when
the child is not guilty of a penal offense, will prevent the scandalous
practice prevalent all over the State of consigning innocent, dependent
children to this institution. Some of the officials seem to be in a
conspiracy with the parents to get rid of their unfortunate offspring
and make the State support them. The Prison Commissioners have returned
to their homes 125 children under thirteen years of age who were sent
to the House of Reform on flimsy charges. Two boys, six years old, were
among the number. They were charged with ‘housebreaking.’ Dozens of
cases just as flagrant could be cited.
“The Board has under way plans that will broaden and better this
institution, which is one of the most important in the State, as it
deals with the child after he has made his first mis-step.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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