Evening star., 1925-05-10
A NATIONAL POLICE BUREAU
BY FREDERIC ]. HASKfN

1T the International Police Confer
ence to be held in New York City
| May IL to Is steps will be taken for
a new and more forceful appeal to
| Congress to establish National
| Police Bureau for this country. This
| Is a measure which is advocated by
700 municipal police departments and
fthe need for it is so widely recognized
! that the leaders in the movement be-
lieve that Congress will take the
necessary action at the approaching
! session.
| Most conspicuous among the advo.
Gates Of a National Police Bureau is
Police Commissioner Richard E. En-
! right Of New York City, who says
that there is no country in the world
Of the magnitude of the United States
| in which there is less cooperation
| between the police forces or where
| the exercise of police power is more
localized.
| AS Commissioner Enright points
| out. there are some IS separate
national, State. territorial and colonial
! governments in this country and its
| colonies, each one having different
| penal code and code Of criminal pro-
! cedure. There Is no established place
| through which important Police in
/ formation Is or could be cleared.
I j
| to municipal police forces where
/ records of criminal identification can
be obtained without cost.
No Statistical Center.
| There is no place where the criminal
statistics Of the several States. Terri
| tories and colonies are officially col.
| lected. There is no national criminal
| laboratory available to assist State or
municipal police forces in the appre-
| hension of criminals or the suppress
sion or prevention OF crime. Nothing
| has been accomplished to standardi1e
| the penal laws or codes of criminal
| procedure Of the several States, Terri
tories and colonies.
ut is my earnest belief that a
National Police Bureau. to be located
| preferably at Washington, should be
established at once" says Mr.. Enright.
''It is my belief that through general
coordination under such a central
| organization the crime rate of America
could be reduced during the next five
years by not less than so per cent ana
| that it's elimination to the point OF
| the irreducible minimum weuld fol.
| low soon thereafter"
inefficient and Impractical.
White Americans boast Of their com.
| mercial efficiency they should realize,
| it Is pointed out, that the total alb
sence and lack of articulation and CO.
! ordination in the transactions of their
police forces make them the most In.
| eficient and impractical known in the
lcivilized world, and the result bears
| Heavily upon the national economy
| and the public generally. -.
There has never been any attempt,
either by the national, State. county
| or municipal governments or police
organisations to prepare and adopt a
plan for efficient police cooperation.
! Indeed, 1t Is asserted that while every
community, town, village or city, re.
rardless OF population, has an effective
| police organization of some sort, each
local police organization 10 law
| unto itself, and the relations 1t may
have with any similar organisation are
fraactory character.
Local Organizations Handicapped.
/! II It Ia necessary for one Of these
local organisations to seek informa.
ton or assistance from another police
! authority It requires as much for.
mality and red tape a. would be i1ecAS.
sAry in communications between the
! ambassadors Of different nations. In.
stead Of frequent confidential exchange
Of experiences and police information
there seems to be an atmosphere OF
suspicion, jealousy or actual hostility
on one side or the other, and what.
ever benefit might be accomplished In
an attempt at cooperation is nullified
before the preliminary gestures are
commenced. stz.s
"It is obvious" declares Commits.
| siOner Enright, that's a(lch a confii.
4 ton In respect to the efficient co.
operation of police forces in the Axer.
else Of police power between different
localities Of the same nation fs ridicu.
lous and would not be. permitted for
Z period Of one day In any first- rate
continental nAtion.''
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