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PAINE COLLEGE LIBRARY nn T
JIIhIiL PAINE CCLL GE CAMPUS . , 'Oj ff \\
dli!A —1 THE PEOPLE’S PAPER d (( 20C))
NATIONAL BLACK NEWS SERVICE .W/ \\ //
MEMBER V j. , *C/
Vol. 3
DOI Report Shows Liquor And Gambling Laws
Vigorously Enforced In Black Community Only
The State Division of
Investigation report released
this week showed that local
police had taken “a less than
vigorous approach to
inf or cement of the laws
surrounding gambling, liquor,
prostitution and drugs.” The
report stated that regarding
liquor violations and gambling,
law enforcement was “racial”
and “an overwhelming number
of people arrested for liquor
violations during 1972-73
were Black.”
The report showed that
Sheriff Desegregates Cars,
Seeks Affirmative Action Officer
Sheriff William A. Anderson
annouced Tuesday that the
sheriffs department is looking
for an Affirmative Action
officer, begun hiring women
nad integrated its cars.
The Richmond Sheriff s
Department has issued and
placed on all its bullentin
boards the following policies
and practices of the Richmond
County Sheriffs Dept, are to
recruit, interview and hire
employees of the department
without regard to race, creed,
color, sex or national origin
and to treat them equally with
respect to compensation nd
* opportunities for advancement
including upgrading
promotions and transfers.
f 1! 11 11
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NAACMJFE MEMBERSHIPS
Charles Walker presents plaque to American Legion
Post Commander Ben Williams for the Post’s $500.00
lifetime membership in the NAACP.
Joyce Tutt (below) pins award on Rev. C.S. Hamilton
for his lifetime membership. Awards were made at mass
meeting Sunday night at Tabernacle Baptist Church.
(See related photos page 6 )
Hip ' 1
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during 1972, 128 persons were
arrested for liquor violations.
Os this number, 115 were
Black and 13 were white. In
1973, 61 persons were arrested
for violation of liquor laws and
all 61 were Black.
In citing gambling violations,
the report said, “There seems
to be a tendency on the part of
the police department to
concentrate its enforcement in
a few places” (virtually all in
the Black community). These
are places that were raided
“more than once” for
“Equal encouragement will
be extended to all employees
to prepare themselves to
assume job responsibilities
suitable to their abilities,
talents and interests.”
A search is underway at the
present time for a person to
assume the duties of an
affirmative action officer who
will report directly to the
Sheriff.
It should be noted that
strides have been made in this
area during this year. The
number of minority employees
in the department comes
within 5 percent of reflecting
the population percentages in
the area patrolled by the
department; the department
P.O. Box 953
gambling: 1219V4 Augusta
Avenue, 900 block of Walton
Way (Possible Gub?), 1400
block of Linden St. (1448 Red
Door Club), 1400 block of
Dunn’s Lane, Monument and
Board (John’s Bar), 1132
Lenox Lane, 1237 Steiner
Ave., 711 and 1105 King St.,
Rouletts Lane (Blue Room),
1100 block 9th St., 1 Gwinnett
St., and 848 Barnes St.
Almost all the 103 persons
arrested for gambling in 1973
were Black. The report charged
that Augusta has open
has hired and deputized eight
women; and females for the
first time are serving as
dispatchers.
In the area of training,
four females recently
graduated from he CSRA law
enforcement school. Two of
these are Black and two are
white. There are presently
three females attending the
academy, two of which are
Black.
“Our patrol cars recently
were integrated. At the present
time no Black deputies are
paired. 1 am proud to say that
this move was received and is
being carried out in a most
harmonious manner.
“After a period of
THE NAACP MEETS
The local chapter of the October 29th 7:30 p.m. at the
NAACP will meet Monday Tabernacle Baptist Church.
Everyone welcome.
Dr. Howard Jordan (L) chats with Dr. and Mrs.
Canute Richardson prior to reinterment ceremonies for
Colonel William Few last Friday. Few is a signer of the
U.S. Dr. Richardson is a member of the
State Bicentennial Commission. Dr. Jordan
represented the State Board of Regents.
Ceremonies marking the States ConstiUituu, were held
reinterment of Colonel William at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
Few, Jr. (1748-1828), one of SEE REINTERMENT
Georgia’s signers of the United Page 6
IDJ
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> nRHHI
Art Professor Alice R. Davis inspects exhibit
sponsored by The Black Women For Progress held
Saturday at the Pilgrim Civic Center. (See related
photos page 5)
prostitution, open lottery
operation and readily-obtainable
narcotics.
Mayor Lewis A. Newman
received the report from
Georgia DOI Director William
F. Beardsley last Wednesday,
but did not release it to the
press until Monday. The
mayor said he wanted time to
study the report.
“A particular handicap
encountered by DOI
investigators was the lack of
orientation and training the
affirmative action officer will
be given the duties of
recruiting and recommending
all qualified applicants for
hiring. He will formulate an
affirmative action plan, and
will be charged with
implementing it.
Although we are now issuing
the equal opportunities
statement, I believe we are
merely making formal many of
the policies we have been
following for some time. This
has been due to our feeling of
professional pride and to the
high regard our law
enforcement men and women
have for each other,” Anderson
concluded.
Augusta, Georgia
confidence placed in all law
enforcement by those who
were interviewed. This was
particularly true in the Black
community where a deep
seated fear of the police
department is evident. Even
those people with
well-documented and specific
information on violations of
the law by members of the law
enforcement community are
hesistant to give this
information to the DOL They
are in fear of reprisal by certain
law enforcement officers.
Generally speaking, there is an
absence of confidence and
trust in the police department
by the Black community,” the
report said.
The investigation was
originally called for by City
Councilwoman Carrie J. Mays.
The report contained four
sections -a “synopsis,” a
“discussion” of the DOI
findings, “recommendations”
to correct the situation and
statistical bases for some of the
division’s conclusions.
In a letter to the Mayor,
Beardsley explained that his
division “looked at the illegal
services arena to include
prostitution, , gtmbUng and
drugs.” He said the report is
limited to “Those places where
lack of enforcement thrust has
contributed to a general
disregard for existing laws.
“We further point out that
the situation which we
observed in Augusta is not
basically one of lack of police
effort,” the letter states. “The
regional populace has
condoned victimless crime by
allowing certain persons with a
criminal intent to become
omnipotent in the influence
they exert upon those who
would enforce the law.”
DOI agents “moved freely
among the criminal elements”
to gather impressions of law
enforcement, the report says.
“Such contact at the street
level indicated a general
distrust and lack of respect for
those charged with
enforcement of vice laws in
Augusta. Stories of brutality
and unprofessional conduct are
so frequent and standardized
that they cannot be
overlooked,” the report
continues.
It points out that some of
the reports of “brutality and
unprofessional conduct" could
have been “stories and
rumors”. However, when
several different agents reports
identical stories coming from
different segments of the
community, we must consider
them valid.
“Certain members of the law
enforcement community in
Augusta and Richmond
County have rendered
themselves ineffective in
controlling some crimes by
consorting with known
prostitutes and, in several
documented cases, sexual
favors from prostitutes. These
accusations are outlined and
substantiated and will be
presented in more depth under
separate cover to the proper
judicial body for possible
prosecution,” the report said.
Last Wednesday, Beardsley
told newsmen an “investigative
report” is to be turned over to
District Attorney Richard E.
Allen “in about two weeks”.
That report would contain
such evidence of wrongdoing,
he said.
“Investigators have readily
sensed a prevailing feeling of
helplessness among the
qualified and concerned police
officers in Augusta. They
generally feel that it is
impossible to adequately and
impartially enforce vice laws
due to the influence exerted
upon superiors by certain
political and criminal figures,”
the report continues.
The report calls Augusta
“wide open” for prostitution.
“Prostitutes solicit openly in
the bars and clubs of both the
city and county with little fear
of law enforcement officials
“Many of the prostitutes in
Augusta solicit their clientele
in city bars and then go to
motels in the county. There
seems to be an efficient
network (composed of club
personnel) for moving
prostitutes from one bar to
another to contact customers,”
the report says.
The report singles out the
Shirley Hotel as being
“infamous” as a “brothel”.
“There have been numerous
arrests in the (Shirley) Hotel
but there is no evident effort
on the part of the city to
curtail this activity. This,
perhaps, is understandable
since certain city officials have
told DOI agents they saw no
harm in a little prostitution.
(There officials are identified
in a report to the District
Attorney),” the report
continues.
“Prostitution will continue
to flourish as long as city
officials view it as a more or
less benevolent evil and make
no effort to control it,” the
report continues.
The DOI found “widespread
disregard of liquor laws” in the
area, the report says. It says
some bars have “a regular
clientele of prostitutes,
gamblers, pimps and drug
pushers. Some bars are
managed by persons with
criminal records who are still
involved in illegal activity.
There is little or no
enforcement of age
restrictions, and individuals
under 18 years of age have
been employed as waiters and
bartenders.”
“An examination of Augusta
police gambling arrests gives
absolutely no indication of any
lottery activity in the city,”
the report says. “Lottery
operations were carried on
openly and with little fear of
interference from police
authorities. It is felt that the
federal investigation has only
scratched the surface of
gambling activity in Augusta.
Illegal gambling will probably
continue as long as city and
police officials have a laissez
faire attitude about he
so-called victimless crimes.”
The report says “recent
statements” by police officials
which “indicated that there
was no heroin problem in the
city or county” were
inaccurate.
Agents’ investigations during
a five-day period “resulted in
some 61 separate violations; 48
of these violations and 25
defendants were arrested for
the sale of herion. The
purchases ranged from
small-user quantities to
significate amounts of the
drug. These cases were made
with relative ease on the
streets. Our agents indicate
that the supply is plentiful,”
the report says.
DOI officials included a
recommendation that an
“anti-crime intelligence unit”
be established in the District
Attorney’s office, with the
responsibility of “investigating,
identifying, exposing and
prosecuting organized criminal
activity in Richmond County
and its hinterlands.”
It recommends a citizens
crime commission be
established “to act as a
spokesman for the community
concerning law enforcement
problems and law enforcement
goals.”
A third suggestion is to
implement a Metropolitan
Enforcement Group, composed
of city and county personnel,
maintaining contact with vice
agents in surrounding counties.
The report also recommends
EDITORIAL
Will Augusta Choose
Life or Death?
It is time for Augusta to take a good look at itself,
face itself, no matter how it hurts, make the necessary
corrections, and move on. to become the kind of city
that we say we want.
No matter how you cut it, the recent DOI report is a
serious indictment against local law enforcement and
the city of Augusta. And now everybody is pointing the
finger at everyone else, since someone has to be
responsible.
The facts documented in the DOI report are really no
news to anyone, at least not in the Black community.
The Black community has always complained of police
brutality. But we are always told that there may be “a
few rotten apples”. Or that police are to a certain extent
“bullies by nature”. But no one has ever cared enough
about police beating US to put a stop to iL
Traditionally, it is those who beat us the most who get
promoted the fastest. It was refreshing to learn last
week that two white officers were honored for trying to
save the lives of two Black men.
The white policeman has always been the physical
symbol of white authority and hate in the Black
community. He is the LAW. He can (and does) break
the law whenever he wants to. He can, at will, register
all of his hatred for our race upside our heads, or, when
convenient, execute us. And it is all legal. There is
literally no point in having a trial. It is only upon
occasion, when some outside force, like the DOI or a
federal judge, comes in that there might be some justice.
Augusta city officials, county officials, business
community and news media constantly whitewash
discrimination. As soon as a federal judge orders justice
then the impression that local officials try to give is tha
they really wanted justice all the time. When Judge
Alimo found the Augusta Police Department guilty of
blatant discrimination, the response was, No bo y
discriminated intentionally.” Are we also supposed to
believe that segregation and slavery were accidential.
While we, too, recognize that there are many decent,
dedicated law enforcement officers, we also recognize
that there is racism, discrimination and corruption, and
it goes all the way to the top. If there is proper
leadership at the top, the rest of the force will fall in
line.
We have to be offended, though not surprised, that
most of the law enforcement by the vice squad for
gambling and liquor violations has been against Black
people. We recall that of those recently sent to prison
for gambling, all except one were Black. The people who
really profited from the gambling are still on the streets.
When Blacks fail to respond positively to police, it is not
apathy. It is intelligence.
We have always urged respect for the law. But we
have also insisted that respect must be earned. And it
won’t happen by people referring to police as
“Augusta’s finest”. Finest what? It is significant that the
DOI report points out that the resources of the DOI are
available to any law enforcement agency that requests
them. But the report underlines, “this division bus received
no request from the Augusta Police Department or the
Richmond County Sheriffs Office to assist in drug
investigations in their jurisdictions.” The question is,
Why Not?
Even more serious than the “less than vigorous” law
enforcement in Augusta is the disregard for talents and
viewpoints of its Black citizens. John Ruffin aiggested is
the disregard for talents and viewpoints of its Black
citizens. John Ruffin suggested long before the DOI
report that an anti-organized Both of these are
recommended in the DOI report. If Augusta had
accepted these suggestions from these Black leaders, it
would not have to consider them at this late date.
Unfortunately, Blacks have to spend so much time
fighting racial discrimination that little time is left for
constructive planning. This is a waste of time, energy
and talenL And Augusta sorely needs this leadership. It
is time that local officials squarely face racial
discrimination, actively seek it out and destroy it, for it
is the cancer that is destroying the very life-line of this
community.
October 25, 1973 No. 32
involvement of the CSRA
Planning and Development
Commission to bring about a
rapport between law
enforcement agencies.