The Journal of Prison Discipline and Philanthropy (New Series, No. 47 and 48, January 1909)Pennsylvania Prison Society
History
The Journal of Prison Discipline and Philanthropy (New Series, No. 47 and 48, January 1909)
Pennsylvania Prison Society
Charities -- Periodicals; Prisons -- Periodicals
“In my opinion this one recommendation, if carried out, would be a
strong check to the spread not only of tuberculosis, but to other
diseases as well. Another recommendation that would prove of undoubted
profit to the State and a check to the spread of tuberculosis is that
all convicts be required by law to spend as much as one to two hours or
more a day in the open air exercising systematically. This--shall we
call it recreation-health-exercise?--time, of one or two hours, could be
arranged when contracts for convict labor were made.”
In his paper on “The Position a Physician Should Occupy in the Trial,
Sentencing and Care of Criminals,” Dr. Theodore Cook, Jr., of Baltimore,
made a strong plea for a larger recognition of the medical profession in
all questions relating to the condition and treatment of the degenerate,
sick and insane prisoner. His contention was that a great many
criminals are sick either mentally or physically, and that when these
appear for trial the State should see that their infirmities are
recognized and treated scientifically. A recommendation made by him
before the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland was to the effect
that before a person is tried for a serious offense his mental and
physical condition should be examined into by a committee consisting of
the jail physician and prosecuting attorney of the county where the
defendant is to be tried and an alienist; the alienist to be appointed
by the Governor on recommendation of the State Medical Society at a
stipulated salary, and required to organize this committee in each
county at stated intervals. This committee would be required to pass on
the fitness of the prisoner to stand trial and receive sentence and to
see that any infirmities were properly attended to; the youthful
degenerate being given special attention, the sick healed and the insane
sent to a proper institution to remain there until discharged by this
committee. This committee should have full power to summon witnesses to
investigate the prisoner’s condition. Its findings should be filed with
the other court records before trial. Under these circumstances the
committee would determine the mental responsibility of the prisoner, and
to this extent relieve judge, district attorney and jury of a burden.
Dr. Cook also strongly urged that the physician should be given more
authority in the various institutions for the detention and correction
of the criminal classes, and that for the sanitary and hygienic
condition of such institutions he should be held strictly responsible.
EVENING SESSION
In his report of the Committee on Criminal Law Reform, Mr. Roger Phelps
Clark, district attorney, Binghamton, N. Y., said in part:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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