Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1909-06-30
CHIEF DISHMAN GETS NEW IDEAS
ON EXTENDED EASTERN JOURNEY
Will Ask Council to In
stall Finger Print Ex-
pert and Increase
Size of Force

Chief of Police Edward F. Dishman
returned from the east yesterday, after
an absence of four weeks. The chief was
buster than a speck of dust IN Wh1rl-
wind on his eastern trip, and Is siZ-
zling with new ideas for increasing the
efficiency of the Los Angeles force. In
stalling the finger print system, chang
i ing the police badge, remodeling the
uniforms and increasing the force are
only q few of the plans which the
| chief Matched out on his way home.
! He appeared at his office yesterday
and relieved Capt Avery D. Bradish,
who was acting chief Of police during
| his absence.
IT had a fine trip" said Chief Dish
man, land am glad tonget back to Los
| Angeles. The clmate]is the best in
the world, and L will try to regain the
seven pounds lost because of the hot
weather in the eastern cities.
Visits Big Cities
at visited a number of the larger
cities in the east, including New York,
Milwaukee, Washington, Cleveland, To-
ledo, Detroit, Chicago and Buffalo.
| While the purpose of my trip east was
| to attend the convention of the InterS
/ national Association of Police Chiefs
of America, which was held at Buffalo,
N. Y, took advantage of my leave of
acquaint myself with the methods Of
the various police departments.
~ will say that the Los Angeles de-
partment is considered to be as good
as that of any city in the United
| States and is highly thought of by the
New York department. The fact that
only members of the most progressive
departments were elected to the execu-
| tive committee, to which I was appoint
! ed, is proof that the department of
this city Is as good as any in this
country.
1T found that, while we are credited
with doing as good work as the depart
ments of other cities, we are far behind
in number of patrolmen, even COM
pared to cities much smaller than Los
| Angeles.
milwaukee has force of 800 men;
Detroit has 700 on its pay roll; Cleve-
| land has $50 men, while Toledo which
is much smaller than this city, has 400
men, |as compared to 283 on the Los
Angeles police force.
Several of the eastern cities which
1 visited have the so-called Black
| Hand element to contend with, and
| are doing good work in bringing these
offenders to Justice AS a matter of
fact, there is no thoroughly organized
Black Hand society in this country,
but certain cliques who make a prac-
| tice of extorting money from fellow
countrymen by means of threatening
| letters.
PetrosIno Killed by Clique
1T has been learned that Lieutenant
Petrosino of the New York police de-
partment who was killed in Italy a
| short time ago, was not killed by
agents of the Black Hand, but by
members of a clique which he was in
strumental in deporting from this
| country.
Although there are more than 200
Black Hand cases a week reported
to the New York police there is no
certain organized band with a head
quarters in Italy, but the offenders
simply are clever Italians who will not
work and prey on their prosperous
| countrymen by threatening them with
violence unless they pay indemnity.
"These bands frequently commit a
murder to make good their threats.
"A canvass of the prisons in New
York revealed the fact that 300 for
eigners who have been in this coun-
try less than five years are serving
sentences for deeds of violence. Ar
rangements with the foreign govern
ments have made it possible to deport
| these criminals as soon as their sem
| fences expire.
II studied the methods of the police
departments of the cities which l WIS.,
tied and learned some valuable points
l did not study their systems of MAX
ing arrests, but their systems of re-
ports, details and the manner of hand
ling certain matters.
To Adopt Print System
"As a result of my observations
have decided to adopt the finger print
system used in the various cities in
the east and will make arrangements
for the installation of such service
This will be a valuable adjunct to the
| Bertillon system now in use here and
as it can be used in cities of the small
er size not using the Bertillon system
will be most valuable. I shall recon-
mend to the city council that they
make an appropriation to defray the
expenses of an expert in this work
a man who has travelled over the world
| installing this system, to come here
and instruct our men in the proper
methods.
July 1 the patrolmen in this city
will be equipped with a silver shield