Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 308, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 December 1910 — STUDY OF CRIMINALS [ARTICLE]

STUDY OF CRIMINALS

Bavarian State’s Attorney Writes Article on Juvenile Courts. Munich Prosecutor Finds Less Than , 500 Youthful Offenses in One Year Among More Than 600,000 People. - - 4- ■ ' ' ! New York. —States Attorney Rupprecht of Munich. Bavaria, has written an article for the Munchener Medizinische Wochenschrift on juvenile courts and the study of the juvenile delinquent as the result of his experiences as a practitioner in the children’s court in Munich, concerning which the Medical Record says: “One result of the establishment of children’s courts : hould be a more intelligent study of the juvenile delinquent The boy criminal differs radically from the girl offender. Youthful offenders differ from adults. The children also differ, as to the relative frequency of offenses, according as they dwell in agricultural, manufacturing or commercial communities. 'Tn that city (Munich) the children’s court takes cognizance of all offenders between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, inclusive. The lad or girl of healthy stock must at this period be regarded as potentially a criminal, because character and will are undeveloped, and experience has not yet had its innings. Such must not be confounded with defectives. "Munich has but a small contingent of youthful criminals. In a population of nearly 600,000 there are less than five hundred serious offenses a year committed by juveniles. Petty offenses multiply this five fold, but with these we are not concerned. "Theft is the great offense of youth. It overshadows all others so far that the latter appear almost freakish. The boy steals in an unpremeditated fashion, while the girl has a plan. Boys tend to steal ‘junk’—not to sell, but for making playthings. Girls tend to appropriate cosmetic articles. “We have heard much as to moving picture shows tempting boys to pattern after burglars and highwaymen. This theoretical position may be quite offset by the actual knowledge that in Munich boys steal to be able to visit these entertainments, which, for all we know, may be highly moral. The temptation is so strong that even a 'good’ boy may pilfer the price of the entertainment. He will do as much to get hold of a Nick Carter or Sherlock Holmes story. "The boys in Munich also steal in connection with deep laid plans for visiting the frontier anti fighting savages. But the Bavarian youth must be much more long headed than the Anglo-Saxon in this respect, for he usually steals a horse and firearms before sallying forth. He robs the family strong box for the sinews of war. “Girls sometimes steal to make a present to a favorite school teacher. One took the flowers off a grave for this purpose. "When caught in the act of a theft a boy usually confesses, repents and refuses to betray his associates. A girl lies until the last minute, and then endeavors to throw the blame on some one else. Boys almost always rob in bands; girls usually act alone“A boy seldom robs his employer, but some outsider; the reverse is the case with girls, who, since they pilfer cosmetics, adornments, etc., must almost necessarily rob their mistresses. “The chief value of Rupprecht’s study is that it deals with normal subjects, the policies advisable in dealing with whom have hitherto received comparatively little attention.”