DISCHARGED PRISONERS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1051, 14 February 1911, Page 5

DISCHARGED PRISONERS.

POLICE SUPERVISION, .SUSPENDED. By Telcsranh—Press Association—Copyright : v London, February 12. i It is.officially,,, announce^. Home Secrejofo Qhurcliili," has informed; tho president : of the Central Association for the Aid of Discharged Convicts that' tho latter come under its cognisance niid control,' and, €xcept in unsuitable cases, police supervision as prescribed by the "Prevention of Crimes Act? will be. suspended; but in the event of misbehaviour the Act will be strictly' enforced..- ■ ' •' \ : Mr. Brise'is dhairman of the council, consisting of representatives of the Prisoners' Aid Societies. ' r»' ; •*' '

THE PRISONERS'. NEW START. la outlining his Scheme of prison" reforms in Parliament; last year, Mr. : Winston Churchill, Home Secretary, discuss-, ed tho question of the recidivist.' The were, very-striking. In the four years from 1901 about 1000 convicts were released from gaol, aud three out of every four had already returned under long sentences. There were two views'as to tho cause of recidivism.; One was that tho criminal: was born, "riot made,' and that tlie propensity to crime was a riatu-, ral weakness. The other view was that tho pressure of .the prison system -wassuch thaii the convict was never able to, reinstate .himself. inV ordinary lifo- again. Ho did not: accept'either view. as(.a'comv plete one. The present'system, however,said Mr. Churchill, was not satisfactory. The convict obtained a 25 per cent, reduc-. tion by good conduct, and,left prison on a license. There were several excellent prisoners' aid societies, and behind/them was tho strong apparatus of police supervision and the regular, machinery of ticket-of-leave. He had great admiration of the way. in'which the polico 'conducted tho business ■of supervision, of prisoners releassd on license. It was not true' to say they harriid a man and held liinr down. It was at tho same time' a'great impediment to a man to have; to. report himself repeatedly to the police, and to have the police'looking.after him." ' The proposal he had to'make was that we should establish a new central aeeney of a semi-official character—half official members representing tho' authority arid half the representatives of the prisoners' aid societies. Tho • object would ,bo to eombino official power with What was essential in . these matters—the;, human' touch, that, there be -individual: study of every'"case, "that*all,.convicts should be 'distributed by' the ' central' agency between the aid societies of the different denominations and the .'different charitable societies and that : the whole business of supervision "should , be: absolutely suspended and the whole system of ficket-of-leave should.,come,to aiuend. completely, and that except in'the case of. refractory persons who were'quite boj-ond'the charge of these, different societies the' convict when, he-left-prison should havenothing more to do -with tho police, but would be dealt with' through ; the' agency of these societies working under the central body, whose only object would be to do the best for the con^ipt. (l ,