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Show A QUEER DILEMMA. Justices' Courts line no Inbereat Right to Suspend Sentence. VAdlUSTS StTM jut onK. "Kill" Edward, tht Xotorloo Uamliter, Dlicnargjd from t'nilodj, Tbe case of "Kid" I'.Iwardi, who was, byorderof JulgsZane, brought btforo thu Third district court on Baturday Batur-day afternoon, at prefaced In that evening's aNkws, i the source of considerable legal dlicuulon. The defendant de-fendant I a well known gambler and Wat, on April 23rJ, arrested and arraigned ar-raigned before Justice I.ancy, on a charged vagrancy, to which he plead guilty, After hearing the facts In the case Uie court suspended sentence, on condition that the defendant would leave the city never to return, Edwards Ed-wards dlupjiearej for a time, though It It now atitrted, on what eeemt to bo good authority, that he wat pit Ing hit trade, under cover, In tlilicltyduilng hit supposed absence. Oa May Ulli he was observed on the streets, when be wat re-ar reeled aud taken before Justice Lauey and tentencej lo thirty days' Imprisonment at hard labor and has tlnco been doing service In Iho city gravel bed t. The details of the case were briefly related lo Judgo sue by Attornejt Gfcn and Newton, counsel for defendant, defend-ant, Judgo Zano held that a Justice of the peace hid no right to suspend sentence after a verdict bad been rendered,olher than to a definite time, which mutt not bu lest than alx hour or morelhau two days, unices the defendant waives Binatponemeht, which the defendant did not do In thlt case. Judge I,aney wa nretont and made vlgoroua but valu search through several volumes of law fur authority lo Juulsh vagrauts. He found where the .eglslaluro had conferred the right upon the City Council to draft an ordinance to that end, but that It had uevsr been done, and that vagrants had been famished without legal au. Ihorlzatlun. Mr. Hlchnor then stated that tr. a course would probably 1 allc .Mo when It wat necessary to rid a community com-munity of tinhorn gambler. To thl Judge ue replied that whllo the action to drlvo aueii character charac-ter from our mldit wa commendable, the court must proceed according to law. Mr. Illchnor then contended that Justices' courts had the tamo owtr over certain otTunaei as the district court. In thl Judge Zano concurred, but replied that thu rules of practice WereJlQereut. Judge I.aney hgdln took tho floor In his own behalf and cited decision from -Vow Jersey and Illinois In sup-port sup-port of his iolttnn, from which helu-ferred helu-ferred that the Judiciary geiietally had tho Inherent right to tusinud sentence. rhe!lllnoldeclslonlulliecaiM of the People vs. Mueller,): "After a conviction con-viction uinna verdict or plea of guilty, the trial Judge of n couit having the highest orlglual Jurisdiction and com-mou com-mou law power In erlmlual matter maysusiend sentence In proi cases, either absolutely or temporarily, and discharge the prisoner." Further, "The practlco of suspending suspend-ing sentences aro Inherent lowers of the court, the exercise of which Is often ludlsnsable, lu the Interests of ibllo Justice, or upon grounds of jaibllo policy or legal nece-tlty." "The lact that tbe pardoulng power la lodged lu thu executive loet net nllect Iho tower of the Judiciary to tusiiend sentence." The 'ew Jersey case wat cited also. It tayt that "The practice of suspending suspend-ing aoiiteuco after conviction of crime it, under some circumstances, Justifiable." Justi-fiable." , Judge Zane remarked that even the district court was prohibited from suspending sus-pending sentence other than lo a fixed time. Ho further said that It bad been customary with himself to suspend sentence years ago, but the Bupreme court badslnte decided that It waa wrung. Justice Lauey hesitatingly demurred against the decision, whereupon Judge Zane staled In unmlstakeable lau-guage lau-guage that tbe Bupreme Court bad had all the decltlou before It ou that autjact.thatthere were In the country, including those to which reference hud been made, and that the decision bad Ueu given only after mature deliberation. delibera-tion. Tue defenuant was accordingly discharged Justice I-auey says that an ordinance empowering the ollce magistrate to punish vagrants by hard labor will be prettnted for passage to tbe City Council Coun-cil tomorrow nlgbt. |