Mettray Penal Colony , situated in the small village of Mettray , in the French département of Indre-et-Loire, just north of the city of Tours , was a private reformatory, without walls, opened in 1840 for the rehabilitation of young male delinquents aged between 6 and 21. At that time, children and adolescents were normally imprisoned together with adults. Aspects of the progressive way in which the Colony was organized anticipated the English borstal system established at the beginning of the 20th century.
30-721: Frédéric-Auguste Demetz (1796–1873), a penal reformer and lawyer at the French Royal Court, together with the architect Guillaume-Abel Blouet (1795-1853), toured the United States together in 1836 to study American prison architecture and administration for the French government. Today Blouet is probably best known as the architect who completed the Arc de Triomphe in Paris . Upon Blouet's return to Paris he devoted himself to
60-408: A summary proceeding I mean principally such as is directed by several acts of parliament (for the common law is a stranger to it, unless in the case of contempts) for the conviction of offenders, and the inflicting of certain penalties created by those acts of parliament. In these there is no intervention of a jury, but the party accused is acquitted or condemned by the suffrage of such person only, as
90-457: A fine of $ 5,000 or both. As a matter of practical effect, some common differences between summary conviction and indictable offences are provided below. In Hong Kong, trials for summary offences are heard in one of the territory's Magistrates' Courts , unless the defendant is accused with other indictable offence (s). Typical examples for summary offences in Hong Kong include possession of
120-610: A jury trial. Some states, such as California , provide that all defendants are entitled to a jury trial (irrespective of the nature of their offenses). In any case, for summary criminal offenses in the United States, convictions can still show as such on a criminal record. Contempt of court is considered a prerogative of the court, as "the requirement of a jury does not apply to contempts committed in disobedience of any lawful writ, process, order, rule, decree, or command entered in any suit or action brought or prosecuted in
150-430: A jury". These can include criminal and civil citations, where a person may be charged with a criminal or non-criminal infraction without the need of a physical arrest, such as in cases of non-violent fineable violations, crimes that carry little incarceration time, or non-criminal acts such as speeding. Any crime that is punishable by the controlling law for more than six months of imprisonment must have some means for
180-488: A simulated bomb , drunkenness, taking photographs in courts, careless driving and pretending to be a public officer . Under New Zealand law , summary offences are covered by the Summary Offences Act 1981, and include offences that resemble forgery , fraud , nuisance , as well as offences against public order. It also covers some aspects of search , arrest and jurisdiction , as well as regulating
210-456: A summary conviction. A "summary offence" is one which, if charged to an adult, can only be tried by summary procedure. Similar procedures are also used in Scotland. Certain offences that may be tried in a Crown Court (by jury) may be required to be tried summarily if the value involved is small; such offences are still considered either way offences , so are not thereby "summary offences" in
240-489: Is a violation in some common law jurisdictions that can be proceeded against summarily, without the right to a jury trial and/or indictment (required for an indictable offence ). In Canada , summary offences are referred to as summary conviction offences . As in other jurisdictions, summary conviction offences are considered less serious than indictable offences because they are punishable by shorter prison sentences and smaller fines. These offences appear both in
270-415: Is still accessible to visitors at 47°26′57″N 0°39′31″E / 47.44917°N 0.65861°E / 47.44917; 0.65861 Mettray Penal colony has become more than just a model prison for boys in the work of Michel Foucault . In Discipline and Punish Foucault denotes the opening of Mettray prison as the most significant change in the modern status of prisons. He writes: "Were I to fix
300-528: The Foreign Legion at age 18. In the 1920s Mettray was no longer the radical liberal institution run by Demetz, who had died in 1873, and was now widely criticized for its harsh discipline. This criticism combined with financial problems lead to the Colony's closure in 1937, by which time more than 17,000 boys had passed its doors, and it had become the most well-known institution of its kind. The site
330-707: The United Kingdom , trials for summary offences are heard in one of a number of types of lower court. For England and Wales this is the Magistrates' Court . In Scotland , it is the Sheriff Court or Justice of the peace court , depending on the offence (the latter being primarily for the most minor of offences). Northern Ireland has its own Magistrates' Court system . In United States federal and state law , "there are certain minor or petty offenses that may be proceeded against summarily, and without
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#1732797273883360-625: The Colony thrived and Demetz's work attracted favorable notice in England, and following the passage of the first Youthful Offenders Act (1854), which greatly stimulated the building of reform and industrial schools, he became the hero of the British philanthropic world. A number of similar penal colonies, modelled on Mettray, were established in other countries including Poland , the Nederlandsche Mettray (by William Suringar ) in
390-591: The Netherlands and the Philanthropic Society 's Farm School for Boys at Redhill, Surrey , in England . The boys had their heads shaved, wore uniforms, and up to the age of 12 spent most of the day studying arithmetic, writing and reading. The older boys had just one hour of classes and the rest of the day was spent working. Some were employed in trades, or in the orchards and vineyards , but
420-762: The Society of Architectural Historians , 29 .3 (October 1970), p. 255. Authority control databases [REDACTED] International ISNI VIAF WorldCat National Germany United States France BnF data Netherlands Poland Belgium People Trove DDB Other IdRef SNAC Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Frédéric-Auguste_Demetz&oldid=916369831 " Categories : Penology 1796 births 1873 deaths Hidden category: Place of birth missing Petty crime A summary offence or petty offence
450-525: The date of completion of the carceral system... [t]he date I would choose would be 22 January 1840, the date of the official opening of Mettray. Or better still, perhaps, that glorious day, unremarked and unrecorded, when a child in Mettray remarked as he lay dying: 'What a pity I left the colony so soon'" Mettray became the focal point for Foucault because of the various systems and expressions of power which it exhibited, something which became very important for
480-481: The federal laws of Canada and in the legislation of Canada's provinces and territories. For summary conviction offences that fall under the jurisdiction of the federal government (including all criminal law ), section 787 of the Criminal Code specifies that, unless another punishment is provided for by law, the maximum penalty for a summary conviction offence is a sentence of 2 years less a day of imprisonment,
510-528: The 💕 [REDACTED] Frédéric-Auguste Demetz (1796–1873) was a French penal reformer and jurist . He toured the United States in 1836, together with the architect Guillaume-Abel Blouet , to study progressive American prison architecture and administration for the French Ministry of the Interior. Upon their return, they published a detailed and laudatory report. The result
540-421: The healing properties of nature and his motto was ameliorer l’homme par la terre et la terre par l’homme, sous le regard de Dieu which translated means improve man by the land and the land by man, under the watch of God . The Colony's mission was to reform, through manual agricultural work and through prayer, the young inmates; many of whom had already been corrupted by their stay in traditional prisons. At first
570-590: The investigations of Michel Foucault in his works. The precursors to his works can be seen in the structures inherent in Mettray. Despite its relatively unremarkable place in penal lore, this notation by Foucault sets Mettray apart from many other prisons. For if Foucault is to be believed, it was at this French penal colony where began our descent into modern penal theories and the inherent power structures they entail. [REDACTED] Media related to Colonie agricole et pénitentiaire de Mettray at Wikimedia Commons Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric-Auguste Demetz From Misplaced Pages,
600-451: The majority performed hard agricultural labour including digging and crushing stones for roads. The work was hard, the food mediocre and any misdeeds were severely punished. This discipline could not, however, prevent the vices encouraged by the overcrowded conditions in which the boys lived. Apart from the reformatory for boys who were mostly deprived, disadvantaged or abandoned children, many of whom had committed only petty crimes , there
630-496: The meaning of that term defined by statute. Contrariwise, certain summary offences may in certain circumstances be tried on indictment along with other offences that are themselves indictable; they do not thereby become "indictable offences" or "either way offences" but remain "summary offences", though tried by jury. Sir William Blackstone , in his Commentaries on the Laws of England (1765–1769), described summary offences thus: By
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#1732797273883660-419: The pavilions there were flower gardens, accommodation for visitors, stables, a farm with animals and extensive cultivated fields, and a quarry. A replica of a sailing ship, complete with masts and rigging, was set in the square and used for training boys, many of whom would enter the navy on leaving Mettray. There were around 400 inmates in total and the Colony was largely self-sufficient. Demetz believed in
690-458: The reform of prison design and in 1838 was appointed Inspector General of French Prisons. Blouet believed in using architecture to realize social reform and together with Demetz worked on the design and layout of the buildings for the Colony which was initially directed by Demetz after its opening in July 1839. It was noted as being officially opened on 22 January 1840. The layout of the Colony
720-430: The sale of spray paint . In relation to England and Wales , the expression "summary trial" means a trial in the magistrates' court . In such proceedings there is no jury; the appointed judge, or a panel of three lay magistrates, decides the guilt or innocence of the accused. Each summary offence is specified by statute which describes the (usually minor) offence and the judge to hear it. A summary procedure can result in
750-434: The statute has appointed for his judge. An institution designed professedly for the greater ease of the subject, by doing him speedy justice, and by not harassing the freeholders with frequent and troublesome attendances to try every minute offence. But it has of late been so far extended, as, if a check be not timely given, to threaten the disuse of our admirable and truly English trial by jury, unless only in capital cases. In
780-405: The two sides of the square. These were referred to as houses and were the places where the boys lived and worked. There were workshops on the ground floor where the boys who did not work in the fields learnt a trade. The first floor functioned as a dormitory at night, with the boys sleeping in hammocks , and as a refectory during the day time. The second floor contained a separate dormitory for
810-444: The younger children. Each house was occupied by a family of 40 boys under the supervision of a young man ( chef de famille ) and his assistant ( sous chef ) specially chosen by Demetz and trained at the Colony's own preparatory school. The Colony was deliberately organised to imitate the structure of a family because it was felt that the failure of the boys' biological families was the reason for them to be sent to Mettray. Besides
840-629: Was Blouet's appointment as Inspecteur général des prisons in 1838, and a prison farm for juvenile offenders at Mettray , on the outskirts of Tours , founded in 1839; it was conceived by both men and directed by Demetz, as a prison without walls, with the backing of the vicomte de Bretignières de Courteilles. Notes [ edit ] ^ Frédéric-Auguste Demetz. (2009). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved October 16, 2009, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online ^ David T. van Zanten, "A French Architect in America in 1836" The Journal of
870-561: Was a separate institution, the Maison Paternelle, where wealthy families paid to have their wayward children looked after. The writer Jules Verne sent his son Michel to Mettray for a period of 6 months in 1876. In his book The Miracle of the Rose (1946), the French writer Jean Genet described his experience of nearly three years of detention in the Colony (between 2 September 1926 and 1 March 1929) which ended when he joined
900-402: Was characterised by a sense of order and community. From the entrance to the Colony a large central square, dominated symbolically by a chapel on one side, lies at the end of a long tree-lined avenue. The entrance to the square has the director's house on one side and the preparatory school, where the instructors were trained, on the other. Ten identical, three-storey pavilions are arranged on
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