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First Offenders' Probation Act.

Colonel A.. Hume, the Inspector of Prisons io his report mikes the following important remarks on the above Act :—

A reference to Table L shows that 72 persons were placed on probation last year, as against 118 in 1895. Of these, 81 have been discharged after satisfactorily carrying out the conditions of their licenses, 1 committed suicide, 4 were rearrested, 1 absconded, and 85 still remain under the supervision of the Probation Officers.

The amount of costs ordered to be paid by the various Courts before whom these offenders were brought was £519 13^ Gd, of which £289 19< Id bad baen actually paid at the end of the year, and the greater portion of the remainder will, it ie believed, be paid as it becomes due. The approximate cost of keeping these offenders in prison amounts to £2,250, which sum, added to the amount of costs, &c, actually paid, gives a saving of £2,769 18j 6d to the colony. Of the 823 persons who have been placed on probation since the intro duction of the Act in October, 1886, 708 have been discharged afteY satisfactorily carrying out the condi tions of their licenses, 49 have been rearrested and sentenced to various terms of imprisonment, 1 committed suicide, 2 have died, 19 have absconded, and 44 still remain ob probation.

The foregoing paragraph is the result of a ten years' working of whal sceptioal persons were pleased ten years ago to denounce as a dangerous unwarrantable aotion of the L?gisla ture in passing the First Offenders' Probation Act in 1886, it having been introduced into and shepherded through the House of Representatives by the Hon J. A. Tole, the then Minister of Justice ; but it is only due to those who were most pro minent in denouncing it at that tima to say that they are now amongst those loudest in its praise, and I am proud to see similar measures being brought forward in the majority of countries. A moro reformatory Act has never been, to my mind, adopted, and the longer it works the mo:e popular it will become with thoae who may still be dubious of its usefulness.

. Before concluding this report there is one more matter to which I should like to invite attention, as it is intimately connected with those plaoed on probation, whioh is the necessity that exists for some organization to take in hand and look discharged prisoners. There is such a society in Dunedin, which, does »ood work under its agent., Mr J. A. Torrence, who is gaol chaplain in Dunedin. The First Offenders' Probation Act has done much to k a ep people out of gaol, but the want n felt of some orgwization which will take in hand prisoners on discharge from gaol. A man comes out of prison and gets into ftmployment. The police naturally have to keep a watch on him, at least for a time. If they inform the employer that bis workman has been in gaol, in many instances the man loses his situation ; if the police says nothing to the employer, and the man commits a crime, the employer turns round on* the police and complains that they did not let him know he was empolying a gaol bird. If the man cannot get work, or hangs about ttae towns, the probabilities are he meets others in similar circtimatanses, and he' gradually but surely drifts lower and become an habitual criminal. Again a man is discharged from prison after completing his sentence with the firm intention of what he would term " going straight." He gets employment, and presently one who has been iv gaol with him oomes along. The former, wishing to keep clear of old associations, will have nothing to do | with the latter, who promptly spreads the information about that he (the former) has been in gaol. The other msn with whom he works, not unnaturally perhaps, object to his staying and working longer witb them, and so be is again thrust down. It may be said he must takt> the consequences of his former crime but the fact remains that he is not allowed to become honest. If some society could be found which would take a rational ana* intelligent, not a morbid or sentimental, interest in

men when they are discharged, and] would find them reasonable employ* ment until they could, so to speak) feel their legs, and lose the • prison 1 taint, many a rflan who now is driveri into the criminal class Would, t feel sure, become a respeotable member of the community.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/MH18971026.2.16

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Manawatu Herald, 26 October 1897, Page 2

Word count
Tapeke kupu
768

First Offenders' Probation Act. Manawatu Herald, 26 October 1897, Page 2

First Offenders' Probation Act. Manawatu Herald, 26 October 1897, Page 2

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