Evening star., 1959-09-29
CrinleCensus
SET as Police
Pledge Help
Mclaughlin Aims
To Find Weuknes!
In Enforcement
BY MIRIAM GUTENBERG
Star stan Writer

BY MIRIAM GUTENBERG
Star stan Writer
With a go-ahead from District
officials, Commissioner Robert
E. Mclaughlin has decided to
pursue his census of crime in
Washington.
His goal is to determine the
weaknesses in law enforcement
that breed more crime.
Promises of cooperation came
yesterday from police, the
courts, corrections. probation
and parole officials. Nearly a.
score of officials attended the
session Mr.. Mclaughlin had
called to get reactions to his
proposal.
To Determine Scope
After hearing what they had
to say, Mr.. Mclaughlin an
nounced that he would appoint
a working committee to de-
termine the scope of the survey
and what additional personnel
would be needed to carry it out.
Former President Hoover, in
an article in This Week, had
emphasized that much is known
about crime but little is known
about what happens to the
criminals as they move through
the courts. Mr.. Hoover urged a
Nationwide crime census to de-
termine what steps can be
taken to curb spiraling crime.
Mr.. Mclaughlin said that
there would be no difhculty in
the various departments begin
ming their survey with current
crime, but what he wants is to
go back two years for an anal
ysis that would bring immedi-
ate conclusions.
Wants CriminolOgist
He made it clear that it will
be necessary to hire a criminol-
ogist both to determine what
statistics would be most help
Iful and what conclusions could
be drawn from analyzing these
statistics.
In the discussion. he found
general agreement that study
should be made and that the
statistics are available from
widely scattered sources.
Deputy Chief of Police How
ard v. Covell, pointing out that
rs per cent of the Districts
lfelons repeat their offense.
praised the proposed study as
a method of determining "the
disease of crime" He said he
Thought the proposed census
would be Of inestimable value
lin finding out why rs per cent
Igo back to prison.
Harry Hull. Clerk Of District
Court, said a lot of informa-
| ton was available in the
courts, and he would be glad
to cooperate.
Chief Judge John Lewis
Smith, jr., Of Municipal Court,
urged that the study be limited
in its detectives because Of the
mass Of statistics that would be
accumulated In his court alone
if all crimes we're subject to
study.
Data on 123,OOO
Acting Corrections Director
Thomas Sard said that since
1882 the penal system has
gathered information on 123,-
900 different individuals and
he offered to make any needed
data available.
Both United States Attorney
Oliver Gasch and Corporation
Counsel Chester Gray said the
survey would not be Of use in
the prosecutive field but would
be of use in rehabilitation ef-
forts. Assistant Corporation
Counsel Clark King, however,
said he would like to know how
many arrested persons repeat
their offense because Of slim
sentences. He said he could not
recall in is years that any one
received the maximum penalty
for driving while drunk but
that crime is on the increase.
Touching on another poten-
TALLY sore spot, Mr.. King said
it would also be interesting to
determine whether young
prosecutors have less success in
getting convictions than vetern
prosecutors.
On the question of where the
records for the crime census
should be compiled, Commits
sioner Mclaughlin agreed with
several officials that the police
department should handle 1t.