Evening star., 1953-09-24
Judge Myers Urges
Unity in Attack on
Delinquency Here

-"
Delinquency Here
Municipal Court Judge Frank
H. Myers today called for a CO.
ordinated attack on Washing
tons juvenile delinquency prob
lem.
Speaking at the Northeastern
Regional Conference of the
American Public Welfare Asso-
citation, the jurist said:
"The youthful delinquency
problem in the District of CO.
lumbia cannot be solved by the
unco-ordinated activities of wide
ly separated groups"
Churches, enforcement agen-
cies and local government must
pool their best minds and their
resources to lessen "the wrong
full and Observation-Disclosures" of
young criminals, he said, adding
that some of these groups fire.
quently worked at odds instead
Of together.
Parents Attitude Scored.
Many parents refuse to believe
that their children are doing
wrong or try to correc. them, ac-
cording to Judge Myers. And if
the police did anything about the
problem, they (the parents) had
the police transferred to other
precincts" he declared.
Asked about the judges state
ment. Chief of Police Robert v.
Murray commented: "Since I
have been in Office, no policeman
has been transferred for doing
his job"
Judge Myers in bis talk urged
passage of a parental RESPONSE
bility law.
Parents should be required to
appear and receive the child into
their custody cat the police sta
tom and offer some satisfactory
explanation for their parental
failure" he told the 800 persons
gathered in the presidential
room of the Statler Hotel.
Urges Damage PAYMENTS.
A law is needed, the jurist
said, to allow courts to make
parents pay for the damage their
children do; if evidence of
neglect on the parents part is
shown.
Some parents have been evad-
ing their primary duty to teach
honesty, obedience, the differ
ence between right and wrong.
and the rights of other persons.
Judge Myers said, terming the
problem one of adult delin-
quency," instead of Juvenile
delinquency"
On the problem of alcoholism,
the jurist said, washington .
is in fact wasting thousands of
dollars in palliating situation
without achieving more than a
temporary solution"
The courts caA send chronic
drunks to jail for a short time
to "dry out" but they are soon
returned to society and more
drunkenness, Judge Myers de-
clared. He advocated the estab-
lishment of a commission which
could commit alcoholics to a
large farm where they would re-
ceive medical and psychiatric
care and vocational training.
President Urged to Act.
Later, Mrs. Agnes Meyer urged
President Eisenhower to throw
his excessive caution to the
winds and take command Of the
political situation as he took
command of the Normandy in
vasion."
Mrs. Meyer is the wife of
Eugene Meyer, chairman Of the
board Of the Washington Post.
Speaking of health and well
ware problems, Mrs. Meyer said,
"The country wants to follow
the President, not the half-dead
remnants of an outmoded type
of Republicanism."
The President and his Secre-
tary of Health, Education and
Welfare, Mrs. Hobby, have out
lined "a genuinely progressive
attitude" toward social secur-
ity, public housing, aid to edu-
cation and the payment of medi-
cal costs, Mrs. Meyer said.
But none of his admirable
legislation and promises will get
to first base, much less to home
plate, unless he makes it clear
that these are not partisan po-
litical issues" Mrs. Meyer con-
tinued, that the future of the
Nation is at stake, and that his
domestic social program deserves
bipartisan support"