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(A) CSoNE ae
“oY Vt
PAROLE AND THE
INDETERMINATE SENTENCE
. THE WORKINGS
OF THE
INDETERMINATE-SENTENCE LAW
AND THE
PAROLE SYSTEM IN ILLINOIS
A Report to the
HonoraB_eE Hinton G. CLABAUGH
Chairman, Parole Board of Illinois
1928
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|\ 00221 6661
FOREWORD
Crime and law enforcement are two of the most important and
widely discussed subjects of the times.
Protection of life and property is the first and most important
function of government; and in the beginning, this was exclusively
so. But with the rapid growth of our great country and the develop-
ment of other governmental responsibilities, is the first duty being
neglected ?
Although our industrial and governmental machines are far
from perfect, we probably are the most ingenious andefficient nation
industrially, Can we truthfully say this of our law enforcement?
Judges of our higher courts, as well as the public, repeatedly ask
whether the people are losing confidence in the courts.
INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION
In the past, the courts, prosecutors, indeterminate sentences,
the parole law and the Parole Board have been subjects of much
criticism. Under attack, an individual is entitled to defense; pre-
cisely so with administrative. bodies. In both cases, self-defense is
proper and advisable, especially when criticism is frequently unintelli-
gent and unjust.
In order to obtain an impartial, intelligent, and constructive
consideration of the indeterminate-sentence laws and of the parole
administration, as well as a comparative study of sentences imposed
by trial judges and juries, and of the practice of accepting pleas of
guilty for lesser crimes than were really committed, and also in order
to avoid suggestion of prejudice or politics, agreement was made
with the University of Chicago, the University of Illinois, and the
Northwestern University to undertake an examination, analysis, and
report on the entire record of the Parole Board for not less than six
years past.
The representatives selected were: for Northwestern, Judge
Andrew A. Bruce, Northwestern University Law School, president of
the American Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology, formerly
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of North Dakota, and ex-member
of the Board of Pardons and Paroles of that state; for Illinois, Albert
J. Harno, Dean, College of Law, University of Illinois; for Chicago,
Ernest W. Burgess, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Uni-
versity of Chicago.
The integrity, qualification, and high standing of these university
representatives insure to the people of Illinois, and make acces-
fii
Iv ; FOREWORD
sible to them in convenient form, valuable, unbiased information
probably not heretofore known to them on crime and law enforce-
ment, especially as it relates to the indeterminate-sentence and
parole laws.
BENEFICIAL TO SOCIETY
Myfirst impression was that indeterminate sentences and parole
laws were an asset to criminals. Proof to the contrary is overwhelm-
ing, and I now believe these laws, properly administered, to be
decidedly beneficial to society, as well as to the individual.
In using the terms probation and parole, it should be remem-
bered that in the legal sense these words are not synonymous, although
they are usually thought of as one and the same. Probation is con-
ditional release (by the court) after conviction with no time served
and is, in fact, a substitute for commitment to a jail or penal institu-
tion. Probation developed from the English practice of deferring
judgment and sentence. Originally probation was limited to misde-
meanors and it certainly was not expected that courts would apply
it in thousands of cases of armed-robbery, burglaries, rape, man-
slaughter, and crimes of violence. Parole is conditional release after a
portion of the sentence (imposed by court or jury) has been served.
Parole gradually developed from commutation of sentence and presup-
posed preparation in a penal institution. Adult probation and parole
had their origin in an attempt to mitigate the harshness of the law.
No thought was given to reform and rehabilitaton.
Persons placed on probation are saved from the stigma of prison
experience, while those paroled have had to undergo the humiliation
and punishment of substantial incarceration prior to parole. The
latter are frequently worse off when released than when imprisoned,
because of forced association with more vicious and hardened crim-
inals, and they must, therefore, be helped to overcome an almost
unforgettable éxperience. Social rehabilitation of men and women
who haveserved prison sentences requires consideration and handling
altogether different from what is required for the reformation and
restoration of those given court probation.
Illinois is said to be one of the first states, if not the first, to
enact a parole law. That was about thirty years ago. It is true that
the purpose of this law is to make good citizens out of felons; yet,
to one who has watched changing sentiment over twenty-five years,
it appears that the pendulum of justice and mercy has swung to the
extreme in favor of criminals. While the unthinking may clamor
for savage penalties, there is a happy medium of substantial punish-
ment, confinement, treatment, training, and finally rehabilitation
under the parole law.
The experience of Illinois, other states, and the federal govern-
ment with paroles commendsthese principles, even where the method
FOREWORD Vv
ofadministration is faulty. And, of course, no machinery is more
efficient than the human element that operates it.
Undoubtedly, the majority of paroled convicts ultimately become
good citizens, if they have not been held too long and thereby ruined.
It does not follow that vicious or habitual criminals, who at liberty
may menacelife, would ever be released if adequately sentenced. As
to others, unnecessarily long sentences are injurious to society as
well as to the individual. It should be remembered that we have
criminals to be dealt with. ‘We have penitentiaries and reformatories,
and (excepting cases of death and life sentences) inmates must be
released sooner or later, for better or for worse for society, as well
as for the offender.
IMPORTANCE OF EARLY ENVIRONMENT
Unquestionably, early environment of parental indifference, home
neglect, defective mentality, lack of education, bad moral atmosphere,
social dissipation, the use of liquor, and other adverse conditions of
life all have an important bearing on criminal development. Crim-
inologists, penologists, psychiatrists, and other experts forcefully
stress the effect of early environment. Although adversity, poverty,
and other troubles are often character builders instead of destroyers,
yet the importance of proper character formation in childhood, on
through the adolescent period, cannot be exaggerated. That, how-
ever, is not a parole or prison problem.
Weare living in a practical age with practical conditions to be
met in practical ways. After the home, church, school, reform school,
and juvenile court have failed, and probation often has been found
unsuccessful, society has definitely determined the accused to be a
felon. This human being-is then turned over to the prison and
parole authorities to be punished, reclaimed, reformed, and rehabili-
tated, or to be kept confined for the maximum period of the sentence,
and eventually to be released. Unwisely judged, this same criminal
may become embittered and hardened by long confinement, and will
be at large ultimately without parole restriction, assistance, or super-
vision.
Cost oF CRIME
Crime causes an enormousloss to society.
Inadequate protection of life and property breeds anarchy.
Parole and reformation will not restore humanlife.
Careful consideration of all human factors is necessary if pre-
. mature releases of criminals are to be minimized.
Certainty of adequate punishment and proper parole administra-
tion are important crime deterrents.
An awakened public realizes that all has not been well in law
enforcement; but there is doubt whether it knows that in so far as
vi FoREWORD
Illinois is concerned—with the handicap of inadequate appropria-
tion and personnel—sentences imposed by the Parole Board have been
much more severe, but not excessively so, than those of juries and
trial judges in either state or federal courts. Observation reveals
that extreme punishment often produces unsatisfactory results.
VOLUME OF WorK INVOLVED
Investigation, examination, and the consideration of certain in-
formation inadmissible in court are essential to justice in fixing time
to be served under indeterminate sentences. More thorough investi-
gation, preparation of records, and consideration of individuals as
well as of crime should result in more satisfactory terms, when sen-
tences permit, and even in permanent confinement for hopeless crim-
inals, as well as in earlier releases for accidental offenders, especially
youths. As a rule, vicious and habitual criminals, who plead guilty
to lesser crimes, profit by reduced sentences and conceal their crim-
inal records.
Better STATISTICAL INFORMATION NEEDED
Every student of crime knows that lack of information and of
uniformity in records makes intelligent interpretation of parole
Statistics difficult. The statement that 80 to 85 per cent of paroled
convicts make good is misleading. No definite record is available
except as to the 15 to 20 per cent failures. Formerly, with rare excep-
tions, discharges from parole were granted after twelve good reports.
All contact was then lost, and authorities were ignorant of address,
occupation, or personal life of the parolee. Crimes may have been
committed in other communities, under aliases, and the facts not dis-
covered or recorded. Similarly, ‘‘first offender’’ records are often
valueless, as criminals with no other ‘‘conyictions of record’’ are
classified as first offenders, despite admissions to the contrary. Accu-
rate statistical information is highly important and there is ample
room for improvement in present methods.
STATUTORY RESPONSIBILITIES
In a great majority of serious felony cases, court and jury are
without power to impose definite-time sentence. Upon the Parole
Board is placed the statutory responsibility for determining the
amount of time to be served by 80 to 85 per cent of persons com-
mitted by the criminal courts of one hundred and two counties, one
of which alone has a population of nearly four million people. To
function efficiently, the Board should have protection and powers
equal to those of the courts.
The length of parole restriction is important. No final dis-
charges from parole have been granted since July, 1926, and the
Board is now keeping contact with parolees until sentences expire,
FOREWORD Vil
with little or no inconveniences to them. The responsibility for
reasonable assistance to parolee, and proper supervision of him while
on parole, is likewise statutory and desirable from every viewpoint.
At the sametime, it is urged that the sooner criminals learn that
justice is swift and certain, and that sentences are imposed to be
served—less reasonable allowance for good conduct—thebetter it will
be for society; and there will be a decrease in the number of such
atrocious crimes as murder, indecent liberties with children, rape or
incest, as well as major crimes of robbery and burglary.
This report is the result of two years’ intensive and discriminat-
ing study. It reveals facts that should arouse the people of Illinois
to action and serve as an aid to improvement in government.
It has a special message for public officials, financial and indus-
trial leaders, educators, the general public, and the press.
Hinton G. CLABAUGH
