Evening star., 1949-04-25
Crime Cost Here
In 1948 Placed
AtS15,000,000

SbsIbIStot S09tISV Subt
Says Volume Reached
High Of l3,029 Cases
The "cost of crime" to the Dis
trict last year Appropriated $15,-
600 1000, exclusive of the personal
loss and suffering resulting from
such offenses as murders, rapes
and assaults, the Washington
Criminal Justice Association de-
clared in its thirteenth annual re-
port, released today.
The volume of serious crime re-
ported to police during 1948
reached a new high of 13.029
cases, an increase Of 38.6 per cent
above the number of such offenses
reported in 1947, the association
reported.
The most prevalent crimes in
the District during 1948. the as
sociation said, were: Homicides.
81; housebreaking. 1865; aggra-
vated assault. 4,947; grand lar
ceny. 2,032, and robbery, 1,159.
OF the 1854 serious offenses
cleared by the police, 6,085 were
solved by arrest while 1853 were
listed as solved" because the
complainant refused to prosecute
or refused to cooperate with
prosecuting authorities.
Crime Reporting Noted.
The percentage increase in
crime in 1948 is not solid fig
ure, however, the association re-
ported, because the analysis is
based on a new uniform crime
reporting system instituted by
the Metropolitan police following
the associations report last year.
While it is unfortunate. the cur
rent report states, that the real
increase in crime cannot be deter
mined, it fs of greater signifi-
canoe to the community that for
the first time we have reason
ably valid estimate of the serious
ness of the crime problem" in the
District.
Despite the increase in the
number of serious crimes, there
were fewer indictments returned
by the grand jury in 1948 than
in the preceding year. the as
sociation disclosed. This will be
the subject Of special investi-
CATION by the association, 1t was
announced.
The Police Department listed So
per cent of the serious crimes as
solved and this compared favor
ably with other metropolitan CEN
Srs, the association reported.
Cost of Thefts Estimated.
Property stolen during the year
totaled more than $2,500.000, Of
which sos per cent was recovered
by police. The association report
ed that the national average for
recovery of stolen property was
500 per cent.
The association explained that
It arrived at its estimate OF q
$15,000.000 crime loss as follows:
THE budget Of public agencies
primarily concerned with appre-
hension, prosecution. trial and
treatment of the criminal, plus
the loss of property sustained by
the citizens, roughly approximates
$15.000,00o a year.
I'm more readily understood
terms the cost is $41 900 a day,
$1,750 an hour. During the year
it amounts to over SIS for every
man, woman and child living in
the District of Columbia. This
does not include the personal loss
and sufferings such as murders,
rapes and assaults where the Of
fense is against the person rather
than against property"
3 Precincts Handle Most Cases.
The greatest number of offenses,
the report disclosed. occurred in
Police precincts, 2. / and 13 re-
spectively. These precincts. the
reported pointed out, cover about
one-twelfth of the area of the
District. This area extends from
the Mall to Euclid street NV.
and from North Capitol to Fiji
teenth streets NV.
There were 484 victims of sex
offenses of whom 1876 were minors
reported during the year.
THE problem of the sex
offender has reached serious pro-
portions in the District, "the as
sociation reported, but said that
the new legislation enacted by
Congress provides IAN aggressive
and intelligent approach to the
problem"
The per capita cost of provid-
ing for prisoners in District in
stitutions, the report noted. is
$2.64 per day as compared with
$2.18 per day at Leavenworth and
STOP at Alcatraz. The per capita
cost of caring for District prison.
ers has increased 180 per cent in
the last 10 years.
The association noted that q
large proportion of prisoners ad-
mitted to the District Jail were
charged with alcoholism. It urged
speedy development Of a clinical
program for the treatment OF
alcoholics.