Conn, J. H.

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Journal of Criminal Law and CriminologyVolume 32 | Issue 6 Article 41942Psychiatric Treatment of Certain ChronicOffenders, TheJ. H. ConnFollow this and additional works at: https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/jclcPart of the Criminal Law Commons, Criminology Commons, and the Criminology and CriminalJustice CommonsThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted forinclusion in Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology by an authorized editor of Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons.Recommended CitationJ. H. Conn, Psychiatric Treatment of Certain Chronic Offenders, The, 32 J. Crim. L. & Criminology 631 (1941-1942)THE PSYCHIATRIC TREATMENT OF CERTAINCHRONIC OFFENDERSJ. IL ConmThere are a number of individualswho repeatedly commit the same or asimilar type of offense, not infrequent-ly following, and in spite of punish-ment by incarceration. The study ofthe life histories of certain of thesechronic offenders has revealed a num-ber of emotional factors, more aptlytermed personal needs, which appearto be identical with those found inneurotic patients.There is a healthy, growing tendencyto treat this type of offender extra-murally. During the past few yearsthe Supreme Bench of Baltimore City,acting upon the suggestion of its ChiefMedical Officer, Dr. Manfred Gutt-macher, has referred eight of theseoffenders to me for psychiatric treat-ment. (Three of these patients hadbeen sent to me previously by theirattorneys, and in each of these casesthe advisability of such extramuralcare was discussed in court.)The case material includes patientswho had been sentenced for repeatedassaults on female children, one caseeach of sex assault on male children,arson, burglary, kidnapping and onefederal offender, who had been arrestedfor sending obscene matter through theI Member of Dr. Adolf Meyer's staff in theHenry Phipps Psychiatric Clinic, Johns Hopkinsmails. In each case the usual sentenceof one or more years in a penal insti-tution was suspended with the under-standing that the offender would begina two- or three-year period of proba-tion, and concurrently start psychiatrictreatment. The probation officer inter-viewed the patient once a month andpsychiatric sessions were arrangedtwice weekly for the first year, andonce a week during the second yearof the probation period. Each patientwas encouraged to secure employmentand contribute at least part of the costof his treatment. The psychiatrist keptin close touch with the department ofprobation and in turn received effectivesocial service assistance whenever itwas needed.The patients have been observedover periods ranging from 4 months(one patient) to 8 years (one patient).Five patients have been treated for1 year and one patient for 2 years.They ranged in age from 19 to 38 years.Up to the present there has been norecurrence of the original type ofoffense nor have any of these patientsengaged in any other type of anti-socialbehavior. Each patient has remainedgainfully employed during the periodof observation.University, Baltimore, Md. This paper was origi-nally presented at a staff conference.[ 631 ]J. H. CONNTake the case of Mr. L., a 38-year oldman of Jewish extraction, who hadbeen found guilty for the fourth timeof intimacy with little girls. He hadbeen sentenced twice to serve sixmonths in jail, once in 1923 and againin 1931. He was fined $50.00 when hewas convicted for the third time in1937. The fourth offense occurred inApril, 1939, when sentence was sus-pended and arrangements made forpsychiatric care. The patient is thesixth (third son) of ten children bornto a jealous, domineering father andan over-solicitous mother. The firstinterview (there were 142 in all) oc-curred on April 25, 1939. (On thatoccasion his wife-this was his secondmarriage-characterized the patient as"full of life and fun and well liked byeveryone. He has been wonderful.")(The patient, who was a neatlydressed, friendly man, said: "I likepeople and I like them to like me, thatis how I like to live." The patient wenton to say that he could recall onlythree occasions in the past duringwhich he had succeeded in doing thesame thing he had done in the parkwith the three girls. But during thenext few sessions the patient was ableto remember ten such episodes begin-ning in 1923-age 23-and occurring atone- or two-year intervals until 1939.)During this interview the patientinsisted that he "loved children." Hesaid: "I used to wonder what had Igained by intimacy with a child. ThenI would begin to get a headache think-ing and worrying about it; worryingthat I had done something to hurt thechild physically or even morally; it wasthen I remember my own little girl(born in the first marriage in 1923) andI used to be crazy about her. I havenever forced a child."During the second interview thepatient reported a dream which he saidhad occurred several weeks previously.Mr. L. had been a member of theReserve Air Corps, in the photographysection of the National Guard (1934-1937). (Due to his wife's apprehensionshe had given up this activity, 1938.)The dream was as follows: He hadbeen asked to go to Europe where anairplane was turned over to him and inthis plane he flew over Germany, andthen as Hitler was making an address,Mr. L. "flew right into the balcony andcrashed." The patient continued: "Iknow I struck Hitler as he was rightin the center of it all. I awoke with aheadache, somewhat excited but notfrightened." This dream which wasoffered spontaneously, is one sampleof the many dreams which were pre-sented later, indicating the patient'sdesire to achieve something whichwould make him a great hero. As itwill be seen later, he joined the armywith the same purpose-to be some-body, a person -whom everyone wouldlook up to and admire.Mr. L., who had average adult intel-ligence, received a fifth grade educa-tion and left school at the age of 13.He began to work for an older brother,a show-card painter, who, like hisfather, bullied him and criticized himon every possible occasion. At the ageof 18 the patient enlisted in the armyCHRONIC OFFENDERSand after a short period of service re-quested that he be transferred to Chinawhere he could "find adventure." (Heapparently was well liked in the armywhere he was very careful about ob-serving every order, and was later pro-moted to the rank of sergeant.)During his service in China hd hadbeen introduced to girl prostitutes.There were a number of such episodes.le felt it was his duty "to prove thathe was a man and a soldier." Therewas very little sex desire on his ownpart, and when he returned to theStates in 1921 he was very pleased tobecome "the hero of his neighborhood."He felt quite content with occasionalkissing parties. There were no sex rela-tions from the time he left the army inJuly, 1921, until his first. marriage inJune, 1922, and this was followed byexcessive activity- (and dissatisfaction)during ten years.The patient's first perverse experi-ence with children had occurred in 1923(age 23) when he had been marriedabout a year and a half. He wanted toget away from his unsatisfying, exces-sive experiences and began a returnto a simpler form of sex contact. Nowhe could say that fondling was takingthe easy way out; "it certainly is a trueexplanation of my feelings at thattime."On May 7, 1939, he and his presentwife, whom he married in 1938, enteredupon a program of sex hygiene. Thetreatment plan was then focused uponthe patient's attitude toward his wife.During a few weeks following hissecond marriage there were reports ofmany instances in which he had sur-rendered his self-respect and inde-pendence at home. He vent on to say:"If a crumb falls upon the floor atbreakfast, my wife will yell at me, 'Ifyou keep on doing this the house willstink,' and then she will make me pickup every crumb. Five minutes latershe will say, 'Kiss me,' and I will givein although I feel I am being forcedto do so every time, but I will do any-thing to avoid an argument." Thepatient had been considering runningaway from home during the year pre-ceding his last arrest (1939). At thistime a definite attempt was made toget him to stand his ground, and grad-ually to give his own opinions. Hisimaginations concerning little girls alsowere being discussed. During the dayhe would constantly be imagining thepleasure he would have in talking toany little girl who might walk in.Heretofore he had explained theseexperiences as being part of his "greatlove for children," but now (May 27)he could say: "I can see that thesewere all sources of relief."On June 6, 1939, Mr. L. reportedthat he was able to speak up withoutconstantly apologizing to his wife andconstantly appeasing her. He said: "Iam getting more confident, I am notso afraid she will get angry if I don'tgive in to her. I used to make believethat I loved her when I really hopedthat she would get sick and I couldget rid of her. I was always afraid thatshe would yell at me." He was sur-prised that when he stopped trying toplacate his wife, her tantrums graduallybegan to decrease and he began toregain his self-respect. Mr. L. beganJ. IL CONNto see how he had always given in toeverybody. From his earliest days inschool he had tried to be a "good" boy.He said: "I used to think that every-body should be good and kind, but Isee that this philosophy was only be-cause I was afraid to refuse anybodyanything."In July he brought the followingdream: "I dreamed a little girl pre-sented me with a box and in it wereenormous plums; it was like a rewardand when I tried to get near the littlegirl to thank her for it she ran aroundthe rear of the box as if she wereafraid of me, and then I stopped dream-ing. I figured it out myself that thedream meant that if I kept away fromthese little girls I would reap thereward of these plums of extra size andvalue; it was not necessary to thankher by coming into contact with her;I could thank her at a distance. Theselittle girls themselves will reward meif I don't molest them." Mr. L. con-tinued: "You see I always thoughtthat I was pleasing them by makingthem feel good, but I can see I wasfooling myself."On August 24, 1939, the patientstated that he felt much more at easeat home, and reported the followingdream: "I dreamed that I met myselfas a sailor coming off a boat. I sawmyself in a sailor's uniform openinga trunk and taking out a lot of shortlengths of heavy chains. Then I sawthe sailor take out a picture of himselfsitting on a chair with his arms arounda young attractive lady; there wererows of little children sitting in frontof the sailor, but he was far behindthem. He seemed so happy and helaughed loud as if he had won a vic-tory." Mr. L. went on to say: "I havealways wanted to have the same senseof freedom as the sailor in the dream;the sailor has a girl of his own age andhas no use for the younger children.I don't care to look at them any more;they are getting obnoxious to me."(November 6th.) His opinion of him-self was definitely changing. Hestated: "I feel like I was worth some-thing. I am not going to let peoplestep on me. I am beginning to do thingsfor myself now." He presented actualevidence for this transformation in hispersonality by relating how he hadasserted himself at work and in hisown home. During the past few monthshe had the courage to demand an in-crease in salary and got it. He has beenable to present his own opinions athome, where previously he would havegiven in. His abnormal sex life hasbeen corrected.During the past two years of treat-ment there has been a gradual butdefinite change in his attitude towardhis wife, and his fellow employees. Hehas felt himself more like a grown manand less like a timid, inadequate per-son who must give in to everyone'swhim. His physical health has im-proved, as well as his feeling of satis-faction with himself.Concluding StatementsThe clinical material would seem toindicate that certain chronic offendersare timid, fearful individuals, who haveexperienced parental repudiation, edu-cational failures, economic hardships,CHRONIC OFFENDERSand social handicaps. In this settingthey lose their self-respect and takerefuge in a system of self-deceptionwhich offers little personal satisfaction.They are repeatedly driven to engagein what appear to be irrational, anti-social activities in the vain hope ofregaining some measure of self-esteem.The factors of personal inadequacyand inferiority, the need for prestige,the sense of fear and guilt, and theresentment against authority seem toplay as great a role in these life his-tories as they do in the lives of ourclinic patients. The futility of pun-ishing these offenders by repeatedincarceration has been a commonexperience. The psychiatrist in thecommunity when given an opportunityto study and treat these individualsover a period of years can help themto achieve a sense of personal balanceand social perspective which make forhappier, healthier living.OPERATING DIRECTOR OF THE CHICAGO CRIME COMMISSIONVirgil W. Peterson, for 12 years a special agent for the Federal Bureau ofInvestigation and most recently in charge of the bureau's Boston office, has beenappointed Operating Director of the Chicago Crime Commission. He succeedsHenry Barrett Chamberlain, who died last July.Mr. Peterson was a member of the F. B. I. staff in Chicago from 1933 to 1935,during which time he gave more than a year of exclusive attention to the crimewave led by John Dillinger. He also worked for the government on the kidnap-ping of John ("Jake the Barber") Factor.Mr. Peterson was graduated from Parsons College, Fairfield, Ia., in 1927with an A.B. degree. He then studied law at. Northwestern University and wasgraduated in 1930. He joined the F. B. I. immediately after being admitted to theIllinois bar shortly after his graduation.During his service as a special agent for the federal government Peterson'has worked in New Orleans, Jacksonville, Fla.; New York, Philadelphia, Wash-ington, St. Louis, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Boston, as well as Chicago.-From the Chicago Daily News, April 1, 1942.

Psychiatric Treatment of Certain Chronic Offenders, The

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Psychiatric Treatment of Certain Chronic Offenders, The

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