Evening star., 1928-12-09

Written Exclusively for The Star and North
American Newspaper Alliance.
DETROIT, Mich, December 8.-Snar-
ing criminals in a radio network woven
by the police broadcasting stations and
sW3f, radio-equipped police cruisers has
become a matter of seconds Tith the
Detroit police department. one of the
first to enlist radio in the never-elijing
battle against crime and the criminal.
Seconds are precious to the crlminal,
The time elapsing between the crime
and the arrival of the police may spell
either capture or escape for him. The
wider the margin of time, the better
his chances. The Detroit police. by the
use of radio are pairing this margin to
the minimum.
Burglars, car thieves, bandits. hlt-ard-
run drivers and racketeers have come
to fear this new police weapon - a
weapon that has caused more than 400
arrests in an average time of n seconds
each in the past eight months.
Burglars have been caughE while they
still were piling up their loot in Detroit
homes. Bewildered automobile thieves
have gaped as police cruiser roared
alongside them just after they had
stolen car.
RadiOed to Cruisers.
Speeding hit-and-run drivers have
been captured and returned to the spot
where they ran down and left some
helpless victim. Bandits have been
traced, surrounded and captured. Rack
eteerS and bad-check passers have been
caught as the result of swift orders
radioed to the cruisers.
Not that the Detroit police are om-
niscient or omnipotent. Not that GRIM
inals do not slip through their fingers
But the Detroit police have heightened
and quickened the arm of the law-an
arm that reaches out through the air to
the scene of a crime.
The broadcasting station, formerly
called station KOP, now W8FS, is on
Belle Isle, Detroit's beautiful island
park in the Detroit River. The station
formerly was in the police headquarters
building, but its operation there was not
successful. due, among other things, to
the number of downtown skyscrapers
whose steel skeletons interferred.
The stations transmitter is of the
composite, master oscillator. 500-watt
amplif1er type, operating on a wave
length of approximately $50 meters.
Equipped With Sets
Fifteen fast police automobiles,
IeILu6u CTulSSIS, DSCduSS Tile cars ana
their crews are kept constantly cruis-
ing about the city, have been equipped
with receiving sets and loud speakers
All sets are interchangeable, portable
completely self-contained and mounted
on steel chassis.
Each set and batteries are contained
in steel cabinet which is padlocked.
The aerial is network of wires in the
top of the car The sets are tuned be-
fore they leave the radio station, where
they are assembled, and they are
locked in the cabinets. The cruisers
are under the instant and constant di-
rection of the operator seated at the
microphone miles distant.
Test, experiments and actual use
have shown it possible for the cruisers
to receive a message or messages any,
where within $50 miles of the station
with the car going at any speed.
Shortly after 3 am. one night several
weeks ago, an excited man called po-
lice headquarters and reported that a
prowler vas attempting to enter a
neighbor's house at 3645 Piquette ave-
nue..
The telephone operator at police
headquarters flashed the warning to
station W8FS.
Blocks away from Piquette avenue,
the Chene station cruiser, in charge OF