SAN FRANCISCO POLICE

Greymouth Evening Star, 28 July 1936, Page 9

SAN FRANCISCO POLICE

CLEAN-UP STARTED.

SAN KRANCISCO, June 17.

Extensive graft investigations here report a system within the police department which it is charged fosters the amassing of tribute fortunes by policemen. “Special-duty men,” reporting to their captains rather than their chief, and operating virtually on a freelance basis, have been revealed as possessing fortunes far beyond what modest salaries could build. Night after night for some weeks police officers have testified before the grand jury—or refused to testify—concerning mysteriously acquired and unreported incomes. Prosecuting officials promise a full investigation of the situation. Preliminary outcomes of the grand jury’s disclosures have been the suspension of some police officers for refusing to answer grand jury questions and contempt proceedings against others. But the disclosure that a 200 dollars a month beat in some districts of this city is the road to wealth and the efforts of some attorneys to block the investigation by legal technicalities have aroused a public demand that the investigation be carried through. San Francisco’s revelations have stimulated a statewide scrutiny of public officials. Already 'the state administration of liquor laws is under investigation on charges of widespread bribery and political control of licensing of liquor dealers.

TAX RETURNS START PROBE. The investigation here had ij,s origin in a luncheon address made months ago by John V. Lewis, collector of internal revenue, at San Rafael. Mr Lewis declared that some of, San Francisco’s police officers had in-

comes many times as large as those paid them by the city. A 25,000 dollar appropriation financed an inquiry by Edwin Atherton, former department of justice' agent. Fortunes ranging from 25,000" dollars to 800.000 dollars have been disclosed. Officers have sought to explain their savings by stories of race track gambling, of shrewd real estate and stock speculations, and of thrifty wives who brought them vast savings. One officer exhibited 26 hank accounts, through which more than 8(10,000 dollars had passed. With lawyers fighting every step of I lie way, most police officers called before the grand jury have spent little time in the witness chair. Power of the grand jury to subpoena or question them has been contested. Authority of tlt<? police commission to suspend poiici' officers has been chal-Icng-.-d. Bu(. backed by court action upholding the grand jury’s powers, (ho investigation is moving along. Already the police commission dsstudying proposals to take appointment of the police chief out of the hands of the Mayor and make him responsible to a nonpolitical body of citizens. It has started reorganisation of the force to abolish specialduty men and make investigators responsible to the chief. But federal tax officials report that steps to prosecute officers who have piled up wealth in the past few years without paying income taxes are under way. Thus the same procedure that sent Al Capone to Alcatraz may be followed by federal authorities in the current investigation.