Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-11-23
BY JUDGE LEVI M. HALL,

OF Municipal Traffic Court of Minneapolis.
Note.-The following Is sent out
through the National Conference on
Street and Highway Safety, dealing
with the question of adequate enforce
ment of traffic laws and regulations "a
an essential factor in the solution Of
traff1c problems:
Adequate enforcement Of traffic laws
and regulations Is one of the outStand-
ing phases Of the street and highway
problem that confronts the people of
the United States. Without 1t all other
things that may be done to alleviate the
problem must fail.
The National Conference on Street
and Highway Safety, at Washington,
has devised uniform measures for the
use Of the States and cities in seeking
improvement in traffic conditions
through the removal of conflicting rules
and regulations in different States and
political Jurisdictions. Various regional
conferences of the States in recent
weeks where the traff1c problem has
been thoroughly considered have in
dorSed the adoption of these uniform
measures by the States and municipal
ties.
Such Action Essential.
Such action by the States and cities
is essential to sound traffic relief aid
improvement, because one Of the diff
cult features of the problem every
where is the absence of uniformity in
regulations and rules of the road.
But these things of themselves will
not accomplish adequate solution Of the
problem. They must be translated into
specific action and operation.
The enforcement of traffic laws and
regulations centers essentially upon the
police and the courts and upon "@eir
relation to the public. Necessarily their
field Of operation is restricted largely
to the urban communities, and for that
reason shall confine myself largely to
the urban aspect.
In the old days the principal function
of police departments was the appre-
hension of criminals. Bat with the
growth in the number of automobiles
the police were confronted with an en-
tirely new function-the protection OF
lives and property under traffic condi-
tons in the streets.
AS the traffic problem has grown in
completely and size 1t has become in
creasingly clear that there should be
an absolute division of these two func-
tons in police departments. The traffic
division should be entirely separate
traffic official in absolute charge of the
traffic bureau and responsible only to
the head Of the police department.
Competent Officers a Necessity.
1t Is increasingly manifest also that
officers who are detailed to traffic duties
should be thoroughly schooled In their
tasks, not only in respect to laws and
regulations and in courteous treatment
of the public, but in every other way
that may be necessary to the proper
and effective performance Of their
duties
It has been my observation in Mime
apolis, and 1 think it is true in other
cities, that the average policeman on q
beat" does not pay enough attention to
duties in respect to traffic. He should
also be SchoOled along traffic lines, so
that he will understand his response
bilities in the protection of life and
property in the streets.
Traffic bureaus should be equipped
with branch of research and investi-
CATION, and officers should be detailed
through it to investigate serious acct
dents. They should be sent imme =
ately to the spot of such accidents.
1t has been found in connection with
the enforcement Of law that in many
cases of serious accident 1t is almost
impossible to secure convictions because
q matter of days has elapsed before the
accident was properly Investigated, and
SUFFICIENT evidence was not gathered on
which the prosecuting authorities and
the courts could act.
The branch Of research and inveSti-
CATION should make a study OF traffic
conditions, maintain records Of acct
dents and make recommendation to the
traffic official as to where regulatory
efforts are needed.
In the larger cities separate traffic
courts are usually maintained, an the
Judges necessarily become more OF less
specialists in their work. In the smaller
cities there are usually special sessions
of a traffic court. Courts of this char
acter make it possible In all serious
violations, such as hit-and-run cases
reckless or careless driving, driving
while drunk and other serious offenses
to Jail and send the driver directly to
traflc court. This is as it should be.
FavOrs Separate Bureau.
think for lesser violations there
should be established q traffic VIOLA
lions bureau, which would relieve con-
gestion in the traffic court, where people
charged with minor attractions Of -affiC
ordinances are brought in. Bureaus Of
this kind are quite adequately described
in the recommendation of the mode
municipal traf1c ordinance OF the Ma.
tional Conference on Street and High
wa. Safety.
Penalties for traffic violations SHOULD
be corrective as well as penal. All Of
tenders should be treated alike, regard
less Of social prestige, financial stand
ing or political influence. The minut'