Statement by the President Upon Receiving a Report of the President's Commission on Crime in the District of Columbia.

A YEAR AGO I asked an outstanding group of District citizens to serve as the President's Commission on Crime in the District of Columbia, and to find out why the District was losing the battle against crime and what had to be done to win it. The Commission, with the help of an able staff, has carefully but vigorously sought the answers. I am pleased today to have the first fruits of its work. I am 'particularly pleased to see that this report contains specific recommendations for action, and I look forward to receiving the further recommendations of the Commission in its final report.

The report on the Metropolitan Police Department in the District deals with a crucial front in our war on crime. I said last July that I wanted the District to have the best police force in the United States. The police, after all, are on the frontline in society's struggle against crime. Their organization, their standards, their training, their equipment, and their operations must be the best. There must be mutual respect and cooperation between the police and the community.

We have made a small beginning. Grants under the Law Enforcement Assistance Act of 1965 and increased funds appropriated by the Congress have made possible the establishment of the Tactical Force, an increase in the number of scout cars and radio-equipped patrolmen, and the use of civilian employees to free more policemen for police work. During this same period, the number of reported criminal homicides, robberies, housebreakings, and auto thefts decreased from the previous year. Indeed, excluding petty larceny, the total of criminal offenses reported in the District was lower in fiscal year 1966 than in fiscal year 1965.

This experience shows that we can increase police effectiveness against crime when we have the will to do so. Now the Commission has provided the guidelines for more substantial efforts. Its recommendations have been developed with the care that a major reorganization of the Police Department requires. It has had assistance from experienced consultants, including the International Association of Chiefs of Police, who are knowledgeable about the experience of police departments in other cities. The Police Department and the Board of Commissioners have been consulted. The public has been given full opportunity to express its views.

The Commission's recommendations range from a reorganization of the top command structure of the Police Department and consolidation of its field forces, to specific suggestions on such things as recruitment procedures, communications systems, and methods by which to improve relations between the police and the community. In short, this report is a blueprint for action. I expect action. I am asking the Board of Commissioners for a report in 90 days on the steps being taken to carry out the Commission's recommendations, and for further progress reports to me periodically thereafter.