Evening star., 1937-09-12
September ~, 1897

reading this page, fourteen major crimes will
rhave been committed.
What will you do about it? A large part of
tfhs Job is now your job.
Law enforcement in any community can
be only as effective as the citizens in that
community demand. The first line of defense
against this huge army of crime is the local
law-enforcement agency. There is no place in
America for national police The ultimate
responsibility must rest on each community,
with the Federal forces bulwarking the local
forces when local criminals engage in inter
state crimes.
Each year, more than 66, 600 paroled GRIM
inals leave our penal institutions and more
than 100000 persons of varying ages are
committed to our city and county jails. Every
time the clock strikes in your town, it tolls off
the fact that at least one murder has been
committed in the last forty minutes and this,
too, goes on day and night without ceasing
1t was necessary for officers of the law to shoot
to kill at least 600 times last year because of
the vicious nature of the desperadoes with
whom they dealt.
Criminals of the most fragrant type are
found living in the best of neighborhoods,
enjoying the fruits of their crimes in an
atmosphere of respectability.
More than 100000 mothers in the United
States mourn the fact that their BOYS and
girls, all under voting age, either are or have
been in Jail, in reformatories, in prisons, or
have met death in the electric chair or by
the hangmans rope. The files of the Federal
Bureau of Investigation abound with instance
after instance of criminals who came from
average American homes but who in early
childhood chose career of lawlessness.
Kathryn and Machine Gun" Kelly are
perfect examples. Both are serving life SEN
tences for kidnapping
More than 1900 families each year are
directly affected by the results of criminal
homicide, many of which are premeditated
murders
Probably no home in America is free of the
lengthening shadow of crime 1t might be we'll
for you to take census at your bridge parties,
at your club meetings, at your social gather
ings, to ask your friends if they or someone
near them have been robbed in the last year,
or if they have suffered assault or have been
victim of any one of the other major crimes,
which total almost million and half a year.
| am speaking now of major crimes, plus the
staggering total of more than fourteen million
less serious offenses, not including traffic
violations
When you make up your budget for the
next year, first of all count off S12O per-
haps many times that amount - which YOU
must pay in taxes in one form or another for
the crime bill. For this represents the crime
cost each year for each man, woman, and
child in the United States Also, if you are
directly viCtimized by crime, you must count
of sum ranging from SIS all the way up to
the mental suffering caused by the loss of
life which will affect you or someone close
to you. And after you have done this, would
suggest that the best resolution which YOU
can make is that you will learn everything
possible to know about the causes of crime -
especially in your own community.
The best way to combat the crime army
that menaces us is through knowledge of what
to do about the situation
In these columns during the next half year
l intend to discuss the reasons behind re-
cidivism (the return of ex-convicts to a life
of crime) - the abuses of many of our state
parole systems = the defects in our prison
systems = why we have so much youthful
Criminaity-what to do to bring local police
dpD2rfYneut tO tho hiuhact off,c;ovcx, - how 20