Annual Conference of New York Magistrates.—A number of important problems before the judges of police courts and children’s courts will be discussed and acted upon at the third annual state conference of magistrates, which will meet in Albany on December 8 and 9.
One of the principal subjects to be discussed relates to the need of a state reformatory for male misdemeanants between 16 and 21 years of age. Courts outside of New York city have no suitable institutions to which to commit offenders of this class. A special feature of the conference will be a stereopticon lecture on the detection and treatment of defendants who are mentally defective, by Dr. George M. Parker, psychiatric examiner for the New York prison association. Dr. Parker has lately examined large numbers of prisoners in the Tombs in New York city and has found that a large proportion are feeble minded or otherwise defective.
Other important subjects will refer to the necessity of public prosecutors in police courts, weaknesses in the present methods of securing and using court interpreters and the treatment of boys and youths convicted of illegal train riding, trespassing on railroad property and stealing from the railroads.
Transcriber’s Notes
Page [2]: “universally condemed” changed to “universally condemned”
Page [3]: “This sysem” changed to “This system”
Page [6]: “state instituions” changed to “state institutions”
Page [7]: “in he colonies” changed to “in the colonies” “refomative agencies” changed to “reformative agencies”
Page [8]: “At Merrplas” changed to “At Merxplas”
Page [9]: “attactive buildings” changed to “attractive buildings”