DRIFT INTO CRIME.

Gisborne Times, Volume LXVI, Issue 10413, 21 October 1927, Page 5

DRIFT INTO CRIME.

'OFFENDERS OFTEN VICTIMS 'P/ / OF,; CIRCUMSTANCES. V

m,: justice stranger’s view

LENIENCY SELOWN TO RAY.

BENEFICIAL RESULT OF REV FORMATIVE TREATMENT.

. AUCKLAND I , Oct., 20. In replying to his farewell from the Auckland--“-(Bar - “this '-morning, • Mr. • Justice Stringer Tsaid’’:—- r-r •!H “You-'have"been good enough to refer to the humanity of. my administration of the criminal daw. I have always -had /before hie those words of Portia, ‘That in the strict way of justice-none of us. would wfn salvation. We all pray for mefey and that saino prayer should', teach ;us to redder-it to others.’ -In my-experi-ence of crimina Haw I tiiihk that in a very great number of cases offeners aro more sinned against than sinning. ' They are often the victims of a great mam- circumstances, heredity, environment ahd lack of proper supervision, y Excessive indulg©nee,; in liqour and other causes "* all lead to crime, and social conditions ••are to some extent responsible for some of these; cases. I : have- heard it said, on occasions, that I have been disposed -to too great leniency, and whilst d think that is not true, so far/as-those who: have .been guilty •of crimes of violence .are concerned, in. regard to a certain class of case, it probably may be true, but I think leniency liasi been., shown to. pay. "“I have’ just received the annual ireixirt from the Prisons Department,” continued His Honor, “and I find that in the administration of the probation Act isomethSng like £35,000 has been, restored by probationers to persons defrauded, and that something like 700 young people have 'been saved from the experience and ; contaminating influences of gaol life. It is also' stated that more than half a '.million' of money has been savjed to the State by'the fact that it has not been necessary. to main-tain-those persons. “With regard to the results'of the Borstal system,” aid His Honor, “the report- §hows that- out of 214 of :tlpe iiimatqs in "the' institution (I mean 314 who have been released after serving a term of detention), only four have relapsed.; into prime. I think if leniency requires justification, it may Well bo found in those figures, and I think the- • experience of 'the Borstal Institute' goes to show that -many young people. drift, into crime-'for lack of that care, s supervision and control which they ought to find at' home, because one finds that Without that care and .supervision there is such an exceedingly small proportion who do not make good.” In concluding, His Honor said: “I hope gentlemen, that at no very distant date the vacancy created by my retirement may he filled by one of youT .-own. members.” —P.A.