Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-07-02
REJOICE OVER VETO
Police Officials Pleased at
Action of Gov. Dix.
CAN PHOTOGRAPH SUSPECT
Maj. Sylvester Among Those Who
Opposed Bill Prohibiting Taking
Pictures Before Conviction.
CAN PHOTOGRAPH SUSPECT

Mai Sylvester and other Washing
ton police officials are jubilant over the
recent vetoing by Gov. Dix OF New
York of the bill to prohibit the taking
Of photographs of persons arrested un-
til after conviction in court. The
police hold that had the bill become
law it would have been one Of the
greatest drawbacks possible to the de-
tective and his work. 1t is believed
that Gov. Dix was Influenced in large
measure by the representations Of Maj
Sylvester. who is president Of the In
ternational Association of Police
Chiefs.
The head of the Washington police,
together with Rollin B. Sanford of the
District Attorneys Association and Dr.
Stillman of the New York humane So
cieties, appeared before the Governor
of New York and stated that the police
hold that a photograph is no more than
an accurate description of a person 1T
was shown that the slickest crooks are
brought to earth through the inter-
change of photographs, and that idenu-
fications often are made because there
is a photograph of suspect. 1t was
declared that the bill If enacted into
law would place premium on crime.
Word Misnomer.
Mai. Sylvester maintained that the
| word photograph" in police parlance.
| was a misnomer, under the decision of
Judge Ball of the United States district
court of Kentucky, where he held that
| the police had an unquestioned right to
| take the descriptions Of those charged
with crimes, and that the most ac-
ha f-fr or,
Of person was photograph
Maj Sylvester declared that no pic
| ture ever was given out of his bureau
| except that of an established criminal and
| then to the police. who. by reason OF haV-
| ing a clearing house. are enabled to lden-
! tify those guilty of crimes. He contend
| ed that the greatest preventive or crime
| in England and in the United States was
| the existence and knowledge Of the fact
| by criminals that new work or criminal
measuring and the finger-print apparatus
| exists. II II did not crime would be
| on the rampage, he said.
AS to the proposed law that a police
| officer could not question or examine
prisoner, the major ventured the opin-
| ion that Ii prisoner desired to talk to
| an officer. it was his constitutional right,
/ that thousands of cases could be recited
| where prisoners suffering from insanity
! and diseases of other kinds would be rail-
roaded TO court because the police would
| be unable to inform the courts of their
weaknesses. SO that proper treatment
| could be extended and justice rendered.
| Cites an Instance.
| Mai. Sylvester recited a case where a
| criminal was insane from the use of NOR
phine and had it not been his privilege to
| examine him just treatment could not
have been accorded. He declared that
the international police condemned any
| so-calIed ''third-degree" methods and en-
| listed the public to aid the police in pun
fishing those who would dare to assault
/ prisoners to that end.
/ The governor in vetoing the bill said
| at Is the first duty of the state to
| protect from criminals the lives and prop
erU Of citizens. To this end the officers