Show THE BAIL BILL VETOED WHAT has been known knowe as the bail bill passed by the legislature and sent to the governor for his ofeleia signature appears in this issue annexed to it is th ehfe veto message of that f functionary that he be should have declined to sign a bill so just and fair is not to his credit it simply gives to appellant defendants who nave have not been guilty of murder rape or other is infamous famous crime and who are charged with offenses for which the punishment does not exceed five years the right to bail pending final adjudication in the more aggravated grava ted cases named and referred to te the ike question of admission to bail is left to the discretion of the judici judiciary ory the chief point in favor of this bill is that it simply renders operative a direct provision ol of the constitution which prohibits the demanding of excessive bail what can be more excessive in this regard than to deny bail altogether yet this measure simply provides that under a certain limit such an unconstitutional action would be impossible it is not a question as to whether as an actual fact any court or courts in this territory would unless legally inhibited sit squarely down upon a constitutional right of a defendant whose case has not been finally determined the point is that no such contingency should be practicable or even possible under the law the present law is objectionable on the ground thattie that the judicial discretion on this vital subject is too wide and the amendatory statute which toe the governor refused to approve is therefore highly necessary the reasoning of the veto ines message age is unhappy the governor inserts what he claims to be bean an expression of the friends of the measure he attributes to that class the statement that an imported judiciary hostile to the people of utah have used the discretionary power entrusted to them as an engine of injustice oppression and nd inhumanity he does not state by whom this exar expression was used if it or anything akin to it was enunciated during the debates on the bill in either house we fall fail to remember it we would be pretty safe in stating that it was never used in the discussions in fact the bill was so manifestly fair that it provoked but little discussion of any kind in the house it was passed by an almost unanimous vote there being but one negative while in lathe the council connell there were two instead of considering the justice of the measure and the unanimity with which it was passed by the legislature the governor appears to pay particular attention as a basis for his action to the presumed immaculate condition of the judiciary eudicia whose purity parity has not been assailed rin in connection with this bill when there ts is a question as to whether the constitutional tut ional rights of any class of people shall be defined denned and preserved by law or left to the discretion of any class of officials judicial or otherwise the decision should fall in favor of the former the argument that under the law as it stands the innocent are less likely to be punished than the guilty to escape is out ot of harmony with american jurisprudence the genius of the institutions ot of this country is the here shall no bw no likelihood of the innocent being punished according to the governors own showing such huch likelihood does exist his chiet reason tor for perpetuating the liability to so great a wrong being that it is not so great as the escape ot of the guilty tue toe gentleman is evidently not in unison with tile tee sentiment prevailing in all civilized countries to the effect that I 1 lit it is better that ten guilty men should go free than that one who is innocent anoula anould be punished we unhesitatingly reverse the governors ground and hold that under the existing loose statute the innocent are more liable to punishment than the guilty are to escape the former are under the risk by a wrong exercise of j judicial discretion to be held in imprisonment to 10 their great detriment while the courts have not yet decided as to their guilt or innocence if the final anal judgment be to the effect that they aney have not been guilty of the charges under which they had been placed tuen then they have been subjected to a grievous and irreparable wrong persons who are guilty are held under bonds that are provided to secure their punishment alter final adjudication and the chances of escape are meagre mea re compared with the probability of innocent people being punished by the errors of courts which no sensible person will claim to be immaculate the ref refusal of bail may in many instances entirely defeat the object of appeal by the administration of the full penalty of the law for the offense charged pending final determination the veto of the bail bill rests upon a flimsy basis |