Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1926-05-06
NEWS review OF
CURRENT EVENTS
National Crime Commission
Goes Into Action Against
Country's Lawbreakers.
BY EDWARD w. PtcKARo


MYTH encouraging words from
w President Coolidge. the National
Crime commission got into action last
week in Washington, determined 70
Hnd some way To check crimes or yio-
lence in the United States The mem
bers held secret committee meetings
and planned a nationwide drive, Is
suing an appeal for the organization
of crime commissions in each state
The people are asked to arouse and
enlist the aid of These four agencies:
Public opinion, by keeping the
need to combat crime before the eyes
Of dutifuI citizens.
Federal authority, by asking such
approval and cooperation within the
scope Of federal influence and power
The governors of the states by
willingness to take up with them the
plans for state crime commissions.
Organizations Of national scope,
such as those devoted to patriotism,
labor, commerce. and organizations az
women citizens, by asking their aid in
applying their influence within the
SAdtEs HH1H pdHtlt VHiiAi0h dhb pun
lie authority.
One immediate result was the oh
tanning Of a pledge from the Rem
lngton Arms company that II would
support legislation for uniform law
in the several states to control the
sale, ownership. possession and use
OF pistols and reyoivers.
Urw,.,I- ~ F5,rF4n,, fJg*.,%fs 4nfI,.f9
the attention Of The commission to.
the tremendous power Of organized
crime, declaring this to be a new
problem confronting civilization.
District Attorney Banton Of New
York deprecated sob STUFF and urged
the vast Importance Of speedy jus
tice "A crime not tried within six
months Of its commission said he,
s1oses over 80 per cent Of its triable
value. Today. as result of clear
ing of the doekets by more courts and
more judges / can try any man in
New York county within three weeks
of his plea. Two thousand and nine
gy-eight cases have been disposed OF
since january /, with the result that
fNcW 1OIk IL DD lOilRNG UbDuIdE Win
criminals You can do that anywhere
in the United States We did it by
Just plugging away at the situation.
by getting more judges, and by hav-
ing a sufficiens number of grand
1nries | begged the newspapers of
New York to give as much space to
the efforts to suppress crime as they
a =
piled that they would print it. They
old. The result of this publicity was
equal to 1000 extra policemen and
ten extra judges
This National Crime commission, it
may be remembered, has for members
some of the country's most eminent
men and women, including former
Ambassador Richard Washburn Child,
Newton H. Baker Herbert S. Hadley,
Mrs. Richard Derby daughter Of
Colonel Roosevelt), Gen. James A.
Drain. Trubee F. Dawson, Charles f.
Hughes, Mrs Carrie Chapman Gait,
Senator Charles S. Deneen, Franklin
~. Roosevelt Charles S. Whitman,
Governor Winant of New Hampshire,
and Judge MaScus Kayanagh and
Henry Barrett Chamberlin of Chica-
90. The commission has been inves-
figating for nine months and has con-
Guided there is no panacea for crime,
hut that application of remedies rests
with individual states and individual
citizens Administration of justice, it
finds, is the most pressing question.
yxyHII.E Mayor Dever of Chicago
w and District Attorney Olson
we're still quarreling about the respon-
sibility for crime conditions in and
about the city, the criminals demon
strated their contempt for the law
and its officers by assassinating an
active assistant states attorney and
two other men with whom he was sit
ting in an automobile, one being a
member of a liquor gang. The muir
serers used a Thompson machine gun,
: new weapon that seems likely to
su,plant the sawed-off shotgun. AS
I'm; been the case each time the gang
STEERS have murdered a policeman in
t'hcs 90, the killing created a great
Juror and brought forth official as
sertions that the criminals would be
caught and hanged and the city
cleaned of all their ilk. But that job
needs something more. Everyone con-
versant with the facts knows well
that at the root of crime conditions
in Chicago lie these things:
Corrupt politics.
Difficulty In getting convictions of
criminals, due to the timidity and
dishonesty of juries and to the hest
fancy of judges who fear reversals
BY an appellate court that pays too
much attention to technicaIities and
petty legal bubbles.
The ease with which the thugs,