Evening star., 1953-12-04
WIe-Top Evidence

The reaction of some readers to The Stars
support of legislation to permit limited use
of wire-tap evidence suggests the desirability
of restating the case.
It should be made clear at the outset that
the proposed legislation would not "legalize"
wire tapping It would not do so because it is
legal to tap wires today and the FBI has been
tapping wires in certain cases since 1910 with
the knowledge and approval Of Presidents
Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower. 1t should
also be made clear that the practice OF wire
tapping is not confined to the FBI. The chances
are that every private eye" in town with the
necessary equipment is also tapping wires.
The thing that is illegal in the Federal
courts (but legal in the courts of some SO
States) is the introduction in trial of wire
tap evidence, or of evidence based on leads OBJ
tanned by tapping wires. This is an absurd
situation which traces back in no small degree
to comment years ago by the late Justice
Holmes to the effect that wire tapping is dirty
business.
1t is dirty business. But it is also dirty
business to install recording device in mans
hotel room, to employ informers to eavesdrop
at some ones window. Yet all of these prac-
tices, dirty or not, are necessary parts of
police work, and appropriate evidence obtained
through such means is admissible in court. So
why discriminate against wire-tap evidence?
Why accept situation in which the FB1 must
and does tap wires to safeguard the Nations
security while insisting, at the same time, that
wire-tap evidence against traitors and enemy
agents may not be used to convict them?
The Star would like to see legislation passed
which would permit the use of wire-tap evidence
in the prosecution of certain crimeS-eSpionage,
sabotage, kidnapping, and perhaps few others
of similar gravity. This same legislation should
spell out the circumstances and the safeguards
under which wires could be tapped. The best
procedure probably would be to require the
wire Taper to obtain permission from re-
sponsible source which would be issued only
under conditions comparable to those surround
ing the issuance of warrant to search a
private home. 1t might be pointed out, incl
dentally that searching mans home is dirty
business Most of us are satisfied, however,
with the safeguards which have been thrown
around this practice. Why assume that wire
tapping and the use of Wire-tap evidence can
not be equally safeguarded?
Finally, after specifying the crimes in which
wire-tap evidence can be used and setting up
the appropriate safeguards, the Legislation
should outlaw all other wire tapping so lar as
it lies within the power of Congress to do So
If this were done, at least two desirable things
would be accomplished: Cd Wire-tap evidence
who might otherwise go free, and (2l it would
become unlawful in the District for any one
to tap wire except under the conditions laid
down in the statute. This, at the least, would
be great Improvement over the situation which
prevails today.
A wisconsin husband walked out on his
wife merely because he saw her grinding up
glass and putting it in his hamburger That's
what the womans page editor keeps telling US
men make up their minds they don't like
new recipes before they even taste them.
Birthdays are fun until you get close to
the age before which you had always promised
yourself you'd amount to something.