Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (March 1, 1915)
Hf "tX&l-'Vjr'fW" "" " "f 3 W"F JrBTjjy.yy. - 1 y sKjp" s"j v "" i-MfWV' -V" MAKQH, 1915, The Commoner 25 The Public! Defender The whole 'country has been inter ested in the experiment made by the city of Los" Angeles, California, in creating the office of public defender, whose function it is to employ the uame activity in the defense of an ac cused person as the- district attorney employs in his prosecution. It had always been the custom in Los An geles, as in other communities, to choose a talented lawyer and give him unlimited resources and ample equipment, and then demand that all of his ppwers be exerted" for the pros ecution of any .nd;' all citizens ac cused of crime.- To individuals here and there ft has occurred, from time to time that similar equipment and endowment ought to be placed at the service of those accused, citizens who are without means to defend them selves in the courts. It appears that in Los Angeles earlier than anywhere else this idea was permitted to take definite shape in a section of the city charter, which reads as follows: "Upon request by the defendant of upon order of the court, the public defender shall defen'V without ex pense to them, all persons who are not financially able to employ coun coi nrt Whn are chareed in the su perior court with the commission of any contempt, misdemeanor, wivuy or other offense. made inquiries with a view to the appointment of a similar officer for that city: "When wo bear in mind that in nearly every criminal prosecution in this state one citizen is arrested up on the complaint of another, and that the law nrovidea an attorney to talco the, side of the complaining witness, it is astonishing that no provision has been heretofore made for a more ef fective method of bringing out the points in favor of the accused. It ,can not be doubted but that the pub lic demands convictions of the dis trict attorney, domandB that ho pros ecute vigorously, demands that he represent but one side. Indeed, the law itself describes the duties of the district attorney, pro vides that he must prosecute and must present the evidence against accused persons. No provision is made, however, for him to defend. The law has always recognized the right of the accused to be defended. If he has money he can employ his own counsel and conduct his own de fense. If Jxe has no money the court appoints ah attorney for him. In a great majority of cases these ap pointments fall to inexperienced youths who seek the appointment for the nurnose of craininc experience. In n,1nt01T10r to nnv ... w i. ii-i,,nA some cases more experienced attor He shall also upon Qxre tnf,i hf iav tpmIvh MniioRt. fHve counsel and advice to such persons in and about any charge against them upon which he is con ducting the defense, and he shall prosecute all appeals to a higher court or courts, of any person who has been convicted upon any such charge, where, in his opinion, such appeal will, or might reasonably be; expected to, resile in- the reversal or modification of the judgment of con viction Yv ' V r s . r c ,. The same section also provides for prosecution of civil suits, minor ac tions, liens for wages and the like, in the case of persons unable to in stitute an action and to pay counsel fees on their own behalf, and it is provided that all such costs of action shall be defrayed out uj. W"1 treasury in the usual manner. tm first official to acquire the title of public defender for -Los Angeles county was appointed in January last as a result of a civil service examin a?ion tie successful-candidate being Mr Walton J. Wood. In less than t?o months the public defend had forty-five cases of persons accused ; M ielony and the civil cases averaged over one hundred a week. The pub lTdefender's office has four lawyers and two assistants. Just what may be done by the pub lic Se ender's office to secure justice for obscure offenders ? f trated by an actual ease in thex perience of the Los Angeles office which is related in a recent number of Everybody's Magazine by Camp beliMcCuloch. It was brought oul that two men accused of burglary were SarvSg when the offense was committed, and the public defender s office proved that they had made Bin cere efforts to secure a ft The court did not put any faith in the story when it was first related, out atte? the facts had J& ed in full, one man was released and the other let on wuu , ""-" "r"d tence. Had this case been conducted in the usual manner, the court w pointing an attorney for the men it is hichly probable that no rigid m- because of lack of funds, and botn men would have been given long terms of imprisonment. The real need of such an office as Jomt STKSw -JErt.W a citizen ot Milwaukee, wv nevs are annointed but they receive no remuneration for their work and it is hardly to be expected that they will give the work the same degree of diligence and care that should be given. In fact, experience has shown, and there is no reason whatever to doubt it, that a person accused of crime, under the old system, could not expect to get adequate represen tation. The government employs a skilled, experienced and ambitious at torney to present the' case against the accused. The defendant has a right to enter the court, on an equal footing with his adversary. Under the old system it was impossible for the defendant to cet the equal pro tection of the law." The American Review of Reviews. HAS IT HELPED AMERICA? "I am far from, saying that an un wise and unpatriotic course in our foreign relations may not justify crit icism of an administration and may not require its condemnation at an appropriate election, but in such a case the reasons must be found in in jury to the interests of the United States and not in the merits of the issues being fought out by European nations in a European arena." In this wise and clear-cut statement from an address delivered before the Washington society of New Jersey, ex-President Taft sets forth the only patriotic American viewpoint. The main question for Americans must always be not how the admin istration's conduct of international affairs affects the interests of this or that foreign nation, but how it af fects the interests of America. Has it helped America? If so, there is practically an end to the argument. Has it hurt America? Then criticism should bo directed toward making it! help America and not toward making it help somo other country. The frentlomcn who are talking about a big organization to oppose the ronomination of President Wil son ought to apply this infallible touchstone to his record before going further with their program. Lcavo Germany out of the ques tion. Leave Great Britain and all the other belligerent nations out of the question. Can these gentlemen hon estly say that President Wilson's course has not, on the whole, tended to help America? Can they sincerely affirm that It has not tended to preserve America from European entanglements and to keep our population busy, fairly pros perous and fairly contented with the present condition of this country? Men may rave and issues may come and go, but the administration that makes its foreign policy subserve the interests of America first, last and all the time is the only adminis tration this country will permanently approve. Chicago Herald. HIS WARNING TO AMERICA "Against the insidious wiles of for eign influence (I conjure you to be lieve me, fellow citizens) the jealousy of a free people ought to bo constant ly awake, since history and experi ence prove that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of rc nnblfcan covernmont. But that jeal ousy, to be useful, must be impartial. The great rule ot conduct for tiB retard to foreiRii relations is, in extending our commercial rela tions, to have with them as little po litical connections as possible. Eu rope has a set of primary interests, whleh to us have none, or a very re mote, relation. Hence she must bo engaged in frequent controversies, the causes of which are essentially foreign to our concerns. Hence, therefore, it must be unwise in us to implicate ourselves, by artificial ties, in the ordinary vicissitudes of her politics, or the ordinary combinations and collisions of her friendships or enmities. "Our detached ana distant situa tion invites and enables us to pursue a different course. . Why forego the advantages of so peculiar a situation? Why quit our own ground to stand on foreign ground? Why, by intertwining our destiny with that of any part of Europe, en tangle our peace and prosperity in the toils of Eur jpean ambition, rival ship, interest, humor, or caprice?" President Wilson has lived up to the Americanism of these words. He is a pro-American. So was the author of the paragraphs which we have quoted at such length from his fare well address the first presldont of our United States, whoso birthday we celebrate: George Washington. Col Hor's Weekly. 5lTt- it !u. -r n.: - 1UC UI11TC15IIJ UI LBKdgQ YTAUT1 n "ddltloB to resident H 1 1 nfl F worV 1en l Instruc- " tion by correapondeRce. QTIT1W ror detailed I-. IjllJlJl formation address JL. SMYcar U.eC.(DrT. CjCUoo.W. wiT.J ! I I I HUM HIM MT HII JEU No Brooks, No Dirt, No Odor-A oonvrmlnnt tamp for over ptirpfle For tho llono, Offlcflor nlon Oo..Ko?ntpor fcoar-jm candl. powir-fnii ynii " l. . make mtmwr-vunvt wi iyre. Air 'Jtcaaearr Sl"!UiinTf i-aui.: KMIMUMH.CI., Dopt & J'Z?2Z M f ra. Oaaollne IWitTery daitrlptlan. let wary pwpaa Stop Using A Truss H S ARfTJIj H PupaoPads D 1 I RUPTUW3 J I amlaLijaaUJaBBBHI a Inn STUART'S tLAPAO-rAD aro different from tho (run, belfljt mrdlclno applicators marto K adhealve purposely to hold th parts securely In place. Nostra er buckles attached-no obnoxious springs. Cannot slip, so cannot chafo or press against tho bom. Thousands have successfully treated themselves at homo with out hlndranco from -worts most ohstlnato cases cure a. eu as velvet easy l apply lna panalva. Awarded Uold Medal. so afterwords no further uie for trusses. Wo prove It by sending you Trial of PIimb absolutely fraa. Write U4av. rtAfM CO., Ha 1218 W. I, . 0 B What Clarkson is Doing for . the Book Buyer 1M eeraral bwnlwd aboojend iJ. braHaa In U htr Vf . h mrarr walk of t('a frwn we 4t Uborvr to th colUrj iffor ad feixh sornunnt omcifJ, Ittm U) persona who bur f w feooka of StopuUr Rttion to if waona wkw aotWaX l)lux fcJiltfofie artC Ucaily prlnUd and boood ataieaf t aa x mm aw. aleH f fra hem IUIT IU.IIU. I BHA MA AAfl4A (I aha tke yaa al-all "rft ."! l VH uu. l.t ilia aa araal-all wan wmnr t fmm tn i. ao mr eaat i txiinln Uj books la - - r W7" - . ' m - .L .. ire iUjabfra pain? ivruxn. nm at Wfl aaeaa" aaa-awa mm hw-j. Tka Kna of the World. 00a ThalrYeaUrda7i.W Wlaatnjr of IUrtaraWortl), Ks fori) tura Uxu Sample Prices afMra i1 Ppra af sm tvathtrn CanfUrey, -4 lrecc( poMUbcr's gnum lb-mrvrU.W CalUsc of Dan Ifattbaw. Urn Horn LJbraryJI vata. aJatt. Ufemraf Oratory, 1 v.U.. $$& -- tnif tW-sajr price ftf. tlM-my price 4S Hare ara Da lane TAiim; ttortxeo bovtul. eewUta wajto, Kor of Uimo atUaa tfun 2 rcsU on tin dollar, liuro. KtpKatT, JsVoVviakaM, f BJwskarajr, HeUX aad aceree atfeara. Get My Big, New Catalog lyHSMHfMt a a eovrac la kkirr daUi of aVHftjore-. HtUmUM iiilnir in literature. mi. mtui tl-Mf Mtnrla vnliigina HitTili I eH men books fet to tfce balJoaifcaibH raa4r the rUb man who UaUU upon hU dollar'a wortii-tJM man wbo waUbaalla panaiaa a4 aeH Ufa far lata mamry thMa any . nUua M TOU to b lb iodca. ICO DOt QulbCU. woukj I rtr hare book or act of books retaraed at aay a panaa Uiaa to bare a auaaa&aa cueuNaer. David B. CUrIuoo Tke atok Brker SIS CkrksM tOMm Ofcifs, IBhms u m e a on AGENTS Men Out f rtt tho ma. whs want bsttsr setitions Stos right hersgit frs Inrarmatien on ins jraaiai nvunnuia snvvnavwn -SALESMEN-MANAGJERS-a'l? iv' 'l...--v sctri m uusiNClMft sins. SJJ SI SB1 SJBsS SI SI SB BS' ajvwr Knami w... -...--. AnortuniitomaKooymony---thoiTi or tryling. .aBsaawasw am n ibbswsi "- m. m atJ LtI.VSSBaau- "gBSF- a IBSSa- - ia m v . . aTLyiWiiirSM-aags1 ... .xt-a-af jyjB-a----jiisa i ssiatatyasagsasssaVe--8. jss 1-7 - n 2irv iSiewi BasfAT.TSj- ataVS-a. SM f a.''S U.BSS k H a. S-" "aw"-fc.--k. - "..- . " " --- a-amm Ba-aa S SBBBBVWWVVSBBy "aSjftfffliWYilil r Tnffi 'iTWirsi Jr 10 $50 $75 -TO EVERY WEEK. i LISTEN; SS&USSt! S&XSJ "Canvassed 11 ramms-i la lets than an boor. Dm ' J SELLING. EASY WRINGER MOPS EASY MONEY EASY TO SELL ton KASYSTJtEKTsM iff m9 j mtia can't fafl. You are bpuad tp ' hOff", TWa HfTt mt wwn wi m- ixmrieatlt)Urtt.TCttieTny It zcu Yov an sail 1SS mmp utex.vnz amy s-. jr. .. aa m ura4r. SlmLe. tna&AciL iek ..& 1 . Jl m-Mi m 1 awmswrw v -v t w-z r" fce)i BHrys. Ho taUdag aeesMarjr. law K se adu'ribiriiTeTwearsoHt: Sywy ! JW. Ho. swppl. f08 h Tm iiutnTrHffns. iitrt ertdeace. afl fr. U. . SKI f waa r- . ai - -? . rzizc- STItesfl B 'lustratiocj siowtM taopoa ike door nd alas arnmk fa rwruacoe. Oats f Innr If nwiale out ml fcrf1 1ob Ciaa. fyataUpJsts. Ww fettled It stntgfctev t astoBaUcB7 w wrfaglBf, sad tw tanu ef cfaak SaJc OTtevtttydiosaJ water. Mosvwc tc Ubav A aVutf re aa fae ihr to claaa Mjs. serceat newer Maun- ff,?;,. 1 11 . .0 tmdMmm
