SOCIAL DEFECTIVES.

Taranaki Daily News, 22 August 1930, Page 8

SOCIAL DEFECTIVES.

An interesting reference was made in the annual report' of the Prisons Department to the class of prisoner sent to gaol for offences where the question of mental impairment is involved. In 1927 legislation was passed making such persons certifiable and liable to restraint, for their own protection ■as well as that of society, in institutions to be set apart for the purpose. The Controller of Prisons points out that many prisoners may. be certifiable as “socially defective,” but are not thereby relieved of criminal responsibility at law, as it is impossible to certify that they were not aware of the nature and quality of their act and that they did not know such an act to be wrong. Under present conditions all that can be done is to sentence such offenders to a fixed term of imprisonment, with no security whatever that after release they will not offend again. What is needed, says the report, is an institution under the control of the Mental Defectives Board, where such persons, who are not criminals in the real sense of -the word, may be detained as long as they are regarded as a danger to themselves or to society without any limitation of a sentence imposed by a court. The recommendation seems thoroughly justified, for the “borderline” cases more often than not are offences against the person, and very often young children are the victims. For such defectives imprisonment has little terror, nor can much dependence be placed upon its reformative effects. The safety of., the community, as well as of the unfortunate pervert, demands, that there be provision for indeterminate detention of social defectives until such time as their release is justified by the recovery of mental poise. Many of them are physically strong and their labour ought to keep down the expense of maintaining a suitable institution. Its establishment might well take precedence of many projects of which Parliament is asked to approve.