Los Angeles herald., 1909-10-07
POLICE BOARD
WORK GROWS
PAID COMMISSIONERS WILL
SOON BE NECESSARY
LABoRs OF BODY CONTINUALLY
INCREASED BY COUNCIL
Meetings Three Nights Week Be-
coming Regular Order of 5usi-
ness-continuous Sessions
Required in Future

Indications are the time is fast ap-
preaching when Los Angeles will have
to have a paid police commission
Mayors hive found it next to impossi-
Bile to get the right kind of material
to serve on their police commissions
and until Mayor Alexander came into
office there were very few police COM
missions that were a credit to the city.
The trouble is the right kind of men
for the place are busy men and can
not afford to give the time consistent
work demands. The work of the COM
mission has been growing more ardu-
Gus every month until now the police
commission is in session about three
nights a week. If Mayor Alexander is
reelected Duty will have to use a
megaphone to make the present police
commissioners hear her voice and
serve again on the commission.
Mayor Harper'S police commission
passed about an hour every Monday
afternoon in attending to police bust
ness, chiefly in granting more liquo-
permits. The present police commits
sion holds its stated meetings Monday
nights and rarely finishes before mid
night 1t is chiefly engaged in revok-
ing liquor permits because the hold
ers do not comply with the law.
But not only does the police COM
mission meet Monday nights, but on
other nights through the week as we'll
Last week the commission met Mon
day, Wednesday and Thursday nights
and this week it met Monday and
Tuesday nights and has another meet
ing scheduled for Thursday night.
Work Largely Executive
A large part of the police commits
sion business is digested in an eXecu-
tive session before the -tated meet
with the mayor in his private office
at 1880 o'clock. The stated meetings
are scheduled to begin at o'clock,
but so great has become the business
it is necessary to discuss before the
public meeting it is very seldom the
commission can get together at 8
o'clock. Monday night it was $50
o'clock before the commission left the
mayors private office. This is rather
inconvenient to those persons who have
to attend the meeting of the commits
sion. Witnesses in cases before the
board are summoned to appear at s
o'clock and applicants for permits are
told to appear at that hour. But when
they appear there is no police COM
mission IN session ana some OF I0en
are compelled to wait until midnight
before being called on.
The matter of permits is adding
much to the duties of the police COM
mission. Whenever the council can
think of no other method of regulat-
ing a business it requires that a per-
nit be secured from the police COM
mission. The council has added per-
NIT after permit until now the num-
ber is amazing. The last act along
this line was to require dance halls
and dancing academies to secure per
mits from the commission. Granting
the permit entails the duty of revok-
ing it if it is abused. and to revoke
permit trial must be held It Is
the large number of these trials that
is adding such a burden to the duties
of the commission.
IF the work of this body keeps on it
will soon be necessary that a police
board be in continuous session, as is
the board of public works, and such
a body would have to be paid, and at
a fair compensation.