Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1924-09-18
JAIL TERM ASKED
IN DRY LAW CASES
Police Superintendent Would
Give First Offenders so
Days Instead of Fines.

An amendment to law, fixing Jail
sentence of at least co DAYS for the
nrst convection on Il charge Of selling
liquor. with proportionate increases
in the length of imprisonment for
additional violations. is recommended
by Maj. Daniel Sullivan. in his an
nual report TO Commissioner Oyster
Maj. Sullivan told the Commits
sloner his experience has convinced
MN that the imposition of fines will not
act as deterrent in liquor cases.
The superintendent's outstanding
recommendation to improve the traf-
nc situation Is the appointment Of
more traffic policemen. There are As
busy intersections throughout the
city, the major pointed out. where il
is impossible to assign traffic officers
because of limited personnel. He
calls attention to the recommended
ton of the Senate committee which
investigated traffic conditions here
that there should be 200 more men.
availa BILE for traffic duty.
New Precincts Foreseen.
Other recommendations made By
the superintendent are:
Erection of centrally located
building for police headquarters and
the detective bureau, which now oc-
cupy a large proportion of the floor
space of the District Building.
Purchase of land for the future
erection of three new police precinct
stations. One should be in the vicin-
ity of Georgia avenue and Colorado
avenue, another in Tenleytown and
third at Benning, to take in the
area east of Eastern Branch.
Enactment of law permitting the
police to hold. for a reasonable time
(,,,,
after committing crime elsewhere.
Enactment of the Capper bill plac-
ing greater restrictions on the sale
and possession of firearms in the Dis
trict. Passage of such law, the
major said. should reduce the number
of crimes of violence.
Appointment of two additional Po-
lice Court judges to handle the in
creasins number of cases.
Passage of legislation to max"
drug addiction felony in the Dis
trict.
A law to regulate tho licensing OF
chiropractors and osteopaths.
Although the Commissioners re-
Gently enacted Il new regulation to
punish bootleggers who use smoke
screens on automobiles to throw pur-
suing officers off the chase, Ma j. Sui
Ivan expresses the belief this will
not prove adequate. He recommends
that Congress be asked to make the
use OF such d smoke serene d felony.
punishab BILE by two years in peniten-
tiary
The total number of arrests last
year was 12.234. compared with g.
IoS the previous - months.
ID. {. Not Crime Center.
The major explains that the great
majority of these arrests were for
misdemeanors. which very effectu
ally disposes of any statement or
inference to the effect that Wash
ington is a crime center"
The major points out that 1o.lo4
of those arrested were under Il
years of age, and $50 of that num-
Der under Il. This condition, he
says. is worthy of serious attention
and study by juvenile agencies.
Maj, Sullivan reports that out of %
murders last year IS arrests were
made.
Arrests for violations of the Vol
stead law totafed 4.2T4, as compared
with $3.50 last year. For violating
the Sheppard law, covering intoAl-
cation, 9.739 were arrested. compared
with S,Sl9 the previous year.