Asylum Mobilitarium: April 2015

World War II had officially been over since September, 1945. There were still millions of servicemen and women still overseas and in the states however so the pool of Dallas Police applicants was not significant and it was hard even finding prospective recruits to even sit for a civil service test apparently.

On October 4, 1946 the Dallas Morning News wrote that there were currently 90 vacancies on the department but only 68 applicants showed up that Thursday night to take the test. If averages held true according to E.M. Powell, civil service board secretary, it would mean that only 22 or 23 of the test takers would pass both the civil service examination and the stiff physical examination. He also said that it would be necessary to call another test in three or four weeks.

City Manager V.R. Smitham said that the City of Dallas would continue its strict requirements rather than lower standards to attract prospective candidates. He went on to say that “We would rather have 12 good men than 3 times as many mediocre candidates.”

I remember that there were times while in Tactical (now SWAT) in the 80’s and 90’s that we were sent to an area to “saturate” a geographical part of the city because of a burglar, hijacker or whatever was operating in an attempt to catch him or her or to at least push that bad guy to leave the location, and hopefully go to the suburbs… not really but you get my drift.

Some of the best times were Sunday’s when a burglar would be pin pointing an apartment complex say…in The Village. Fighting crime while driving around and around those apartments (burglars were known to frequent the pool areas) with my squad-mates on those Sunday afternoons are among some of my best memories. I doubt if it’s still that way, times have changed and Dallas will arguably never see the freewheeling post disco New Wave 80’s and the edgy 90’s again. We did catch some burglars however!

On October 12, 1946 there had been numerous complaints about Dallas police cars patrolling the Southern Methodist University campus. What?? DPD squad cars at SMU? Couldn’t happen.

The reason behind the “ I have nothing better to do than complain about DPD cars driving around my neighborhood” according to University Park Mayor H. E. Yarbrough is that U.P.’s squad cars had the new black and white color scheme like DPD squad cars had as their paint schemes as well for years. He pointed out that the difference was that U.P. cars had a gold shield on the side (of course) and their cars didn’t have “Police” in large letters on the rear of the squad cars. The new black and white paint scheme will be put on all U.P.P.D. cars except detectives and the chief’s car.

Mayor Yarbrough said that the change from all black to black and white was made because U.P. commissioners felt that laws would be better obeyed if people knew that police were around. “The all-black cars looked just like any other private car,” he said.

Whew! It’s a good thing that we weren’t worried about the threat of the Russians having the A-Bomb yet and Dallas being vaporized…but just wait a year or so!

In other more important news Dallas liquor store operators will pool their strength in an attempt to find a suspect in a recent rash of liquor store robbery-shootings where two clerks had been killed.

Julius Shepps, a well known and respected liquor wholesaler called for a meeting at the Mercantile Bank building of area liquor store owners and suggested an award for the arrest and capture of the suspect. Some store owners had already hired security officers to combat the killing and robbing spree. Other owners are closing earlier than usual as another solution.

The robbery suspect was described as being “nervous” according to one clerk who survived being shot. Stores had been robbed at such locations as Latimer St. , North Pearl near Cochran St. and Cedar Springs at Alamo.

DPD Chief of Detectives Will Fritz said that the DPD is redoubling its efforts in the search for the killer after Joe Enna was shot at 1715 Latimer and was in serious condition at St. Paul hospital.

One liquor store owner suggested closing as early as 7 P.M.

Lastly we find that on October 24^th the DMN reported that three juveniles ages 15, 16 and (17?) were participants in a scam where they passed themselves off as working for the “Blank” detective agency.”

An Oak Cliff women whose 16 year old daughter was missing called police when one of the trio came to her home and said that his agency would search for her daughter for a fee of $25.00. The women became suspicious and called Crime Prevention Inspector J. W. Welch. The woman was told to invite the P.I. in training to her home which she did. The “juvenile” was described as a 17 year old (not sure if 17 was considered an adult in 1946) who came to the front door with a lengthy “contract” for the woman to sign. “I represent the “Blank” detective agency,” he said, naming a fictitious company.

Officers Ed Hicks and J. C. Peterson were waiting down the street when the juvenile arrived. Hicks removed his coat and tie and went to the house and then becoming a distraught relative.

The 17 year old talked to Hicks and outlined the “services” that his company would provide to the family in an attempt to find the woman’s missing child. Hicks then told him that he was as a Dallas Police officer. The 17 year old was arrested.