10
Election and Place of Meeting
Mr. E. R. Cass, Secretary of the New York Prison Association, elected President for 1928. He has been for some years the efficient Secretary of the American Prison Association. This election comes not only as a tribute to his untiring service for the Association, but also as a recognition of his ability to serve as our official head. Howard C. Hill, Executive Secretary Prisoners’ Aid Association, of Maryland, was elected Secretary. Kansas City, Missouri, was selected as the place for the meeting in 1928. -
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and addresses of much value were heard during the Many papers a sessions of the Association held at Tacoma, but the limits of the space hallowed for a report of the proceedings prevent us from making a full report. FEDERAL COURT ADOPTS PROBATION Authorization has just been made by the Department of Justice for the appointment of full time probation officers with salaries of $2400 and traveling expenses in six more U. S. District Courts serving districts as follows: Eastern district of Pennsylvania with ofl’ice at Philadelphia, Western district of Pennsylvania with once at Pittsurgh, the State of New Jersey, with once probably at Trenton, Western district of Kentucky with office at Louisville, Eastern district of Illinois with ofhce probably at Danville, and the State of Georgia with once probably at Atlanta. Officers will be appointed as soon as eligible lists have been established by the U. S. Civil Service Commission which is now receiving applications at Washington up to October 1 for an examination to fill these six positions. Applicants must be residents of the state in which they are to serve, and must have had either at least one year’s experience in paid probation work, two years’ experience in other social welfare work, or three years’ experience in volunteer probation work. Two years of special training in a school or college may be substituted for this experience. Either men or women between the ages of 21 and 55 are eligible to take the examination. The announcement states that &dquo;applicants must be persons of good moral character and temperate habits, intelligent, discreet, patient, tactful, adaptable to the work, and of good speech and manner, and be able physically to discharge
Downloaded from tpj.sagepub.com at UNIV OF PENNSYLVANIA on February 12, 2015
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the duties assigned.&dquo; They are to be given a practical written examination and an oral examination to test personal qualifications. Full time federal probation officers are already at work in three districts, with offices in New York City, Boston and Charleston, W. Va., and will be attached to most of the U. S. District Courts in the future. The law under which probation now operates in the U. S. District Courts was sponsored by the National Probation Association which had long urged the need of it, and passed by Congress and arranged by President Coolidge in 1925. The law was also urged by a large majority of the U. S. district judges and attorneys as well as by leaders in every state interested in social reform. Previously the U. S. District Courts had no power in any case to suspend sentence or to take into consideration the youth or degree of offense of any convicted offender. Investigations made by the National Probation Association show that over 1000 youths under 18 years of age are tried by Federal Courts of the country each year. A much larger number of youthful first offenders who can be reclaimed by a chance on probation come before these courts. All the states in the Union have probation laws which are being Worked out successfully in most of the state courts. Where paid professional probation officers are at work it is found not only that they save many young offenders from the danger and stigma of unnecessary commitment, but that they also furnish the courts with important information on the records, social history and character of every offender referred to them for investigation. It has been amply demonstrated that volunteers alone cannot be depended upon by the courts to give the steady, responsible service needed for thorough-going investigation and supervision of probationers. The probation work of the Federal Courts is under the supervision of the Department of Justice which has taken a sympathetic interest in its extension. It is believed that probation in all Federal courts will result in reducing the number of first offenders now committed to Federal prisons and in building up into good citizenship many thousands of youngsters otherwise started on the road to crime. (Circular recently issued by the National Probation Association, 370 Seventh Avenue, N. Y.) near
.
Downloaded from tpj.sagepub.com at UNIV OF PENNSYLVANIA on February 12, 2015
Election and Place of Meeting
Mr. E. R. Cass, Secretary of the New York Prison Association, elected President for 1928. He has been for some years the efficient Secretary of the American Prison Association. This election comes not only as a tribute to his untiring service for the Association, but also as a recognition of his ability to serve as our official head. Howard C. Hill, Executive Secretary Prisoners’ Aid Association, of Maryland, was elected Secretary. Kansas City, Missouri, was selected as the place for the meeting in 1928. -
118
118
*
.
and addresses of much value were heard during the Many papers a sessions of the Association held at Tacoma, but the limits of the space hallowed for a report of the proceedings prevent us from making a full report. FEDERAL COURT ADOPTS PROBATION Authorization has just been made by the Department of Justice for the appointment of full time probation officers with salaries of $2400 and traveling expenses in six more U. S. District Courts serving districts as follows: Eastern district of Pennsylvania with ofl’ice at Philadelphia, Western district of Pennsylvania with once at Pittsurgh, the State of New Jersey, with once probably at Trenton, Western district of Kentucky with office at Louisville, Eastern district of Illinois with ofhce probably at Danville, and the State of Georgia with once probably at Atlanta. Officers will be appointed as soon as eligible lists have been established by the U. S. Civil Service Commission which is now receiving applications at Washington up to October 1 for an examination to fill these six positions. Applicants must be residents of the state in which they are to serve, and must have had either at least one year’s experience in paid probation work, two years’ experience in other social welfare work, or three years’ experience in volunteer probation work. Two years of special training in a school or college may be substituted for this experience. Either men or women between the ages of 21 and 55 are eligible to take the examination. The announcement states that &dquo;applicants must be persons of good moral character and temperate habits, intelligent, discreet, patient, tactful, adaptable to the work, and of good speech and manner, and be able physically to discharge
Downloaded from tpj.sagepub.com at UNIV OF PENNSYLVANIA on February 12, 2015
11
the duties assigned.&dquo; They are to be given a practical written examination and an oral examination to test personal qualifications. Full time federal probation officers are already at work in three districts, with offices in New York City, Boston and Charleston, W. Va., and will be attached to most of the U. S. District Courts in the future. The law under which probation now operates in the U. S. District Courts was sponsored by the National Probation Association which had long urged the need of it, and passed by Congress and arranged by President Coolidge in 1925. The law was also urged by a large majority of the U. S. district judges and attorneys as well as by leaders in every state interested in social reform. Previously the U. S. District Courts had no power in any case to suspend sentence or to take into consideration the youth or degree of offense of any convicted offender. Investigations made by the National Probation Association show that over 1000 youths under 18 years of age are tried by Federal Courts of the country each year. A much larger number of youthful first offenders who can be reclaimed by a chance on probation come before these courts. All the states in the Union have probation laws which are being Worked out successfully in most of the state courts. Where paid professional probation officers are at work it is found not only that they save many young offenders from the danger and stigma of unnecessary commitment, but that they also furnish the courts with important information on the records, social history and character of every offender referred to them for investigation. It has been amply demonstrated that volunteers alone cannot be depended upon by the courts to give the steady, responsible service needed for thorough-going investigation and supervision of probationers. The probation work of the Federal Courts is under the supervision of the Department of Justice which has taken a sympathetic interest in its extension. It is believed that probation in all Federal courts will result in reducing the number of first offenders now committed to Federal prisons and in building up into good citizenship many thousands of youngsters otherwise started on the road to crime. (Circular recently issued by the National Probation Association, 370 Seventh Avenue, N. Y.) near
.
Downloaded from tpj.sagepub.com at UNIV OF PENNSYLVANIA on February 12, 2015
