Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-04-17
Would Creute Fund

WO0tU StSQtC WIZ
(. Mr.. West was also asked by
Mr.. Mcleod to draft a measure
providing that all fees for police
services at special details should
go into a Police Department fund
which would be used to pay off,
duty policemen for working on
the special assignments.
Mr.. West said he favors such
legislation and believes it can be
drafted quickly.
Such legislation has been
urgently requested by Chief Muir
ray since 1852 when he wrote
the then president Of the Board
of Commissioners. F. Joseph
Dpnohue, that ito use the few
men that we do have on foot
patrol for special details and to
leave the streets of the city UNI
protected except for motorized
patrol. is to invite a serious
crime problem" At that time
Chief Murray suggested using
an off-duty pool of policemen
for special details.
Chief Murray renewed the
suggestion in a letter to Com
missioner Samuel Spencer last
December.
Stripped OF Beats.
"Our men are being continu-
ally stripped OF, their beats
where we need them most to
handle these special details" he
commented yesterday. Since
we apparently are not going te
be able to increase our force to
$500 men. we've got to use tbs
men we have to the best ad-
vantage.
wherever possible, these de-
tails would be manned by Off
duty policemen and where the
event is commercial. these po-
licemen should be paid by the
persons responsible for the event
After all whatever police service
is rendered-whether it is di-
recting traffic or preventing dis
turbances-would not be re-
quired if the event were not TAX
ing place."
During the 1854 fiscal year
police devoted 207. 461 man-hours
to other than their regular police
duties. These details included all
special assignments from guard
ing the President to manning
parades.
The report of these services
showed police devoted 6,443 man
hours to services at and around
the National Guard Armory,
1880 to the circus grounds on
Benning road. 2.173 to theaters
mainly to Carter Barron Am
phitheater-and 1886 to the ap-
proaches to the excursion boats,
No special pay was forthcoming
for any of these services.
Flower Show Duty
During the flower show at the
Armory. for example. IS police
men were directing traffic on the
Armory detail during the after
noon and II from 4 pm. to mid
night the whole week. A jazz
concert at the Armory in Febru-
airy required the services of lC
policemen drawn from beats in
other parts of the city.
A survey of police and fire
services - paid and unpaid -
turned up these paradoxes:
An entertainment or sports
event booked into Uline Arena
means a bill for police services
The same event booked into the
Armory gets free police service.
The services Of Park Police are
taken. into consideration in rem
tai fees for the circus grounds
and the Carter Barron Amphi-
theater. and the Federal govern
ment is thus reimbursed. But the
District gets nothing for the
Metropolitan Police detailed
around the circus grounds and
the amphitheater to direct ira
fic. Chief Murray tried to get the
amphitheater to pay for police
service but was overruled by
other city officials.
Under the controversial 194S
law for billing for police and fire
services. Constitution Hall does
pay a bill for fire services, which
amounts to a few hundred dol.
lars a year. But it does not gel
billed, under the same law, fol
police services, which would come
to a lot more.
At the rate Of 1928 an houl
per policeman, Griffith Stadium
paid .$9,455.20 last year, Ulins
Arena paid $2.163.10 and Turner,
Arena paid $2,294.57.