Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-11-29
THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
1t is Arraigned by One of Chfef
CuddY,s Mallgners.

From the Evening Express, November Zctn
For some months past there has beel
great deal of illfeeling in the polio
department OF this city, and as resul
the ends of justice in many instance
has been defeated. Not a day passes bu
that in this city some crime or another il
not committed and the perpetrators es
cape arrest. Burglaries are frequent
and petty thieves abound in great mum
bers. There has not been an importan
capture made by the police department
of Los Angeles since Thomas j. Cuddy
resigned his position as Chief of Police
and it is time that the taxpayers should
be informed of the condition of affairs.
The Council appointed chief OF de
tectives, with corps of assistants, to at,
tend specially to crimes, such as burg
laries and offenses beyond those of ordi
nary law breakers.
Emil Harris was appointed Chief of the
Detectives and given Office room in the
police headquarters. To him all secret
work was to be reported: but notwith
standing this fact crimes that have beer
committed and reported at the police
station have not reached Harris depart
ment until days after they had been com
mitted, and in some cases weeks have
passed before the knowledge reached
him.
Detective Harris and Captain Loomis
do not speak to each other, and while
Chief Benedict and Harris are on
friendly terms, there is no business to
speak of transacted between them.
A few days ago Officers Bowler and
Boland, who were under Harris orders
in the secret service department, and
who were considered good men for the
business, were removed from that de-
partment by Chief Benedict. The Chief
told Harris that it was necessary to take
Boland and Bowler from the detective
department and put them on regular
beats, as he wished to increase the num-
ber of patrolmen. NO sooner were b.
land and Bowler given beats than
PatromeD Lee and Cotes were put on in
their stead. Lee and Cotes, while they
are good men, are unfortunately not
well posted in secret work.
Instead of there being one detective
department of the police force, there are
two-Benedict mas one and Harris the
other.
About three weeks ago Mr.. Spence,
who conducts restaurant on Spring
street, suffered loss of 5000 at his resi-
dence, through the depredat1ons of burg
lars. He reported the matter to the
police office, but nothing was done in
the matter. After the lapse of few days
he called at Lawson's Detective Agency
and secured their aid, saying he did not
think the police could recover the pro-
perty. Captain Moody, of Lawson's De-
tective Agency, called on Detective Harris
and was surprised to learn that that gen.
tleman did not know anything about the
robbery. About two weeks after the
crime was committed Mr.. Harris was in
formed of the deed. 1t was then too late
for Harris to work on the case, as he dis
covered that the goods had been shipped
out of the city, or at least no track could
be obtained OF them.
There is no harmony between the Sc
cret service and those under Captain
Loomis or Chief Benedict's orders, and
the sooner one is abolished the better for
them, the expenses to the city will be
less, and more criminals may possibly be
captured.
There are ten men in the central Office
on duty in the daytime, including the
Chief and Captain-two mounted police
men, one patrol wsgon-drver; Collins,
who puts.in time,taking care of the stolen
property, ETC., the secretary, jailor,
register, clerk, sergeant, and ar extra
officer who does not have anything to DO
but attend the Council and meetings of
the Fire Commission and Police Com
missioners. To-day Mr.. Preston, who
owns an orchard in the southern portion
of the city, called at the police station
and complained that tramps for some
time past have been destroying his fruit
trees and stealing fruit. He desired the
presence of an officer. Out of these ten
men Benedict did not send man to that
portion of the city.
There is room for reform in the police
department, and the sooner the fact is
thoroughly understood and acted upon
the better it will be for the people.