Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-04-11
Frequent Transfer of Lead
ership Held Likely, With Full
Shake-up Possible.
SERGEANT SOON WILL BE
ELIGIBLE FOR PROMOTION
Advance Automatically Would
Eliminate Him From Serving
as Commander.

More frequent changes in the leader
ship of the Police Departments vice
squad in the future appeared certain
today, with entire reorganization Of the
squad not entirely out of the picture, as
its present leader, Sergt. Oscar j. Let
terman, found himself served with no
tice to appear and defend himself be-
fore the Police Trial Board and war
rant to appear in Police Court as an
outgrowth of one of the squads raids
last month.
The changes, however, are not a re-
Election on the work of Letterman, 1t
was pointed out. He becomes eligible
for promotion to a lieutenancy next
July /, assuming that he is able to clear
himself of the charges he now faces
and a promotion automatically woulc
take him out of the list of eligibles toi
command of the vice squad.
Letterman's present troubles centel
around a raid made by his squad or
the apartment of Mr.. and Mrs. ElecE
Harmon. 1900 block of S street, Marcf
%. He had no search warrant for the
premises and although he reported Inc
seizure of liquor there. Assistant DlStrl
Attorney David A. Hart declined Il
prosecute the case. Since that time
him to the department and have sworr
out a warrant for his arrest.
Pratt Wants All to Lead Squad.
In discussing the affair today Maj
Henry c. Pratt, superintendent OF police
said that Letterman had been in com
mand of the vice squad since its In
auguration, February 6, 1928, and tina
it didn't seem right to keep on
sergeant in that command continuously
as it was the easiest place in the de
partment for man to meet trouble.
He said he thought that all tn
sergeants at the various precincts shoul'
be given whirl at the job, as 1t Nigh
prove valuable training in investigation
work. Few would want the job, h
added.
The vice squad is dispatched whe
complaints come into police headquart
erS about speakeaSies, gambling den
and disorderly houses, when the com
plainants have been unable to receiv
| satisfaction from the precinct captains
| If the vice squad is successful in max
| ing the case, then headquarters send
notice of it to the precinct involved
with an inquiry as to why the precinc
, had failed to do what the vice Squa
was able to do.
Fenning Abolished Squad.
There was an interval in the term o
the former major and superintendent
Edwin B. Hesse, when the department
got along without any vice squad what
ever One of the first official acts o
| former Police Commissioner Fredericl
A. Fenning was to order the vice squat
of those days abolished. His reason TO
this, however, was that the old squat
members. were being forced to spent
most of their time in civil courts teSu
| flying in divorce cases growing out o
raids they had staged
Soon after the death of the old vic
squad, Commissioner Fenning instituted
the flying liquor squad, under the com
mand of the then Lieut.. GU
Burlingame This squad concentrates
on stopping the entry of liquor into tn
District. Later. the need was felt TO
a squad to handle the problem of stop
ping the sale of liquor in speakeasie
after it came into Washington.
Shortly after Commissioner Procto
L. Dougherty succeeded Fenning tht
vice squad was recognized along :leV
lines and Letterman was put in com
Pratt Cites Results.
Mai. Pratt said today that he felt
the squad was doing a good work, al
though by the nature of its assignment
it becomes the target of waspist
criticism, and that he felt that any
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