European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 25, 1969, Darmstadt, Hesse Continued from Page 11 area although we can report him to his commander. We can t catch a vehicle which is speeding because we can t Hoover the Speed limit about this time a Man flagged the patrol car and Hebert brought it to a Stop. The Man a i new to Frankfurt explained he was lost and asked directions to his billets. Directions were quickly and politely Given. This although there s nothing to it is probably another of our major jobs. Both on patrol and at the station react As an information Agency answer ing even when there is very Little happen ing the patrolmen have a lot to do. Although the prostitution District is must on their patrol they cover 17 other areas which must be checked periodically for Security reasons. Among these Are yes facilities housing areas an military compounds. We Don t necessarily look for any thing specific just anything that does t look right said spec. 4 Terry Guver who had taken Over on the Midnight shift. With him was sgt. Gary a. Sundt a relative newcomer to the 709th my in. Undt was receiving his orientation with Guver showing him the route they usually take on their rounds. Along for the ride was 1st it. Richardl. Forney a sharply dressed officer who was the Leader of a platoon which had the night shift for two weeks. He did t talk much and when he did twas usually an explanation of what they did and Why they did it. He did How Ever relate an incident which reflected the scope of incidents maps Check which Range from serious to humorous to Ridi Culous. We had a Call from one of the hous ing areas he recalled from a House wife who said her husband had assaulted her. When we arrived she met us at the door with Sticky goo All Over her fac and hair. The crime he had assaulted her All right with a Large pizza could hardly keep from breaking up but we made a report on Al he patrol had returned to Kai ser Strasse and it was a critical time they explained because the bars were beginning to close. We Don t have Many problems wit the troops stationed Here Driver Guver explained. They know where they Cango without being clipped. But Many of the gis on leave or pass Don t have any where to go now. They la just wander the streets and this is a bad place to be found late at night. Where we re going now i would t walk alone. You Nee done person to watch the front and sides and somebody to walk backwards watch ing that both patrol leaders said emphatically that they would urge any gis they found there to leave although the area was not off limits. This is a Street that has been named pig Alley by visiting gis. It is the area where the older prostitutes ply their Trade. We were patrolling through Here Sev eral months ago Guver continued and found a Man who had been struck by a car. By the Pool of blood around his head you could Tell he had been lying there quite a while. A group of 10 or 12 people were just standing around he had assaulted her All right Vith a Large pizza pie.9 Page 12 watching him die. Your life in t Worth anime a Rule that maps obey even though some of them Don t like it is not to exceed the 31 , Speed limit under any circumstances. According to it. Col. Higgins who strictly enforces the mandate and has been known to pull the License of Myshe catches breaking the regulation this is a matter which was carefully studied before it was put into effect. I be checked the studies made brother Law enforcement agencies he said and made studies myself. We a found that the time saved in Rushing to the scene of an Accident or crime won the More than a minute if that much in distances of 10 Miles or More. And considering the Accident rate Over Here it s just not Worth the risk the drive takes by the patrolmen generally the time we get there it s usually Over anyway said one. Speeding in t Worth the risk. In the states you be got a different i Don t know said another. It Takeall the fun out of being a girls and booze account for most of the maps problems in Frankfurt. Sir. Phil head it before starting checks with desk sergeant on night patrol. The stars and stripes Herbert right and spec. 4 pay Trexler sign for ammunition before setting out. Saturday january 25, 1969 uneasy place to Gret taken Frankfurt is a swinging place. Orat least that s the word hat s passed around. But according to Frankfurt Provost marshal George w. Higgins jr., most of the stories about Frankfurt Are myths relating Back to just after world War ii and have Little or no truth when it comes to the Ultra Rnoden City today. The military police chief insists that the newly arrived Serviceman should be aware of what goes on in the City How Ever for it could mean the difference in being conned out of Money or having to watch the scenery from the inside of a jail is no belter or worse than Many other cosmopolitan centers the tall lieutenant colonel explained and like most Large cities it s an easy place for a Serviceman to get taken for every thing he has if he blunders into the wrong place to have a Good Higgins pointed out although the Inci Dent rate in Frankfurt is on the decline when i was Here quite a few year Sago we had a battalion now we Only need a company there Are still Man Pitfalls which cause a great Deal of trouble for those who break the rules of the game. The serious incidents most of which Higgins feels could be eliminated with an intense education program fall into two classes violence caused by one i against another Soldier or civil Ian and servicemen falling for the age old tricks of the Confidence Veteran policeman explained who runs into trouble in Frankfurt and Why the servicemen assigned to Frankfurt soon learns where hell encounter trouble or lose his Money and usually stays away from those places. But the Guy visiting Frankfurt or just arriving at the replacement Center does t unfortunately he finds out the hard Way More times than you would think is the person who does t have the Benefit of a Friend who knows that drinks in that bar can Cost you a month s pay or that the Street Down there Isa Hood hangout or the girls on this Block can remove your Wallet faster than you can order a Beer. Most of our problems Start around Kaiser Strasse. This and the streets around it Are a solid mass of bars strip joints and prostitute hangouts and when you Combine women and liquor anything that happens is Par for the course Higgins his desk drawer he brought out a Pearl handled stiletto Par for the course Higgins said grimly often includes this. This is Small the great equalizer. Fourteen inches Long with a gleaming steel Blade honed to razor gun problem is nothing Coin knives can Lead to trouble says Frankfurt s top cop it. Col. George w. Higgins or pared to this the pm emphasized. Little Guy buys one of these and suddenly he s a big Guy. He does t realize that when he whips this knife out there s liable to be someone who s going tomake him use it. And when he does he s in bad trouble the kind you go to prison a majority of cases though servicemen s troubles Are not of their making. They Are caused by a huge army of con men who will use Ever trick to relieve a victim of his Money. These people Are something else the Frankfurt chief continued. They know every trick. Some of the ways the operate you would t believe anyone would fall for but others sound a Littlemore plausible. Invariably the method is aimed at the human or emotional feelings of the Serviceman where he is most Likely to part with his like they sell bibles. Or rather the take orders for them. Whether they Are Ever delivered is another matter. The Serviceman will buy a Bible Asa gift to Send to his aunt Matilda for in stance. He pays maybe $39.50 and the dealer is to Send the Book to the person designated. Most of the time it never gets there and even if it does it s usually not Worth More than $10, at most. There Are honest salesmen but the buyer better beware in a Deal such As by far the most common con though is the operator who takes the youngster looking for a play for pay girl. The pitches always a variation on a Basic approach. This is the part that s hard to be Lieve Higgins sighed. The con Man asks his subject if he wants a girl and if the answer is yes he tells him to put 20 or 40 Marks $5 or $10 in an envelope. After instructing him to wait he goes into a nearby building and comes out shortly after. He says he s sorry the girl is not there and hands Back the envelope. Of course the Money has been replaced with Cut paper but by the time the Soldier finds that out the con Man s Long Murphy men the Money switch is called the Murphy game have gone so far As to convince their Mark that he should give them his watch Wallet and other valuables for safekeeping be cause usually these girls Are of bul you never can and gis fail for it to the rate of 10to 12 reported cases a Mouth. s ridiculous but it happens All the time Higgins fumed. And Youcan figure that if that Many cases Are reported it probably happens at a rat of two or three times Over the re ported incidents. That would be some where Between 30 Wal is times a the stars and stripes Higgins went on to say that the Ger Man police do everything they can to help the Serviceman get his Money Back. These people Are really Good he commented. They really go out of their Way to help and you d be amazed at How effective they Are in matters like Higgins has to rely on the German officials quite heavily because his author Ity includes no jurisdiction Over German citizens and with exceptions persons in civilian clothes. This has caused mis understandings even among the patrol men who work for him. Our authority is outlined in the status of forces agreement which the . Has with Germany and this puts quite number of limitations on what we can or cannot do he people in civilian clothes. We have no Way of knowing whether or Nota Man is a German citizen an Amer ican civilian working Here or a Man who took an overseas discharge. Although a patrolman might suspect him of being Soldier he cannot Force him to say who he this individual gets into trouble All we can legally do is notify the Ger Man authorities and let them take Over. If it is determined that he is an Amer ican Soldier then and Only then could we take him into j. He same rules supplemented by Higgins directions apply to the pass checking of gis out on the town. Our patrolmen Are not to go int bars for the purpose of checking passes the pm explained. They May Check wit the owner to see if everything is quiet but they Are to leave the Serviceman alone. A Man on pass is out for relaxation and he does t want the maps bothering him. I see that they Don . Frankfurt s top american cop for the past 19 months entered the Mili tary Law Field some 24 years ago after earning a degree in police administration from Michigan state University. His claim to Fame As he laughingly puts it is that he is one of 10 officers on Active duly to have graduated fro the Fri s National police Academy. He also has completed the Agency s narcotics school. A progressive Lawman who goes bythe Book until another approach is called for Higgins emphasizes that we re Here to help the Serviceman and his dependents and this mandate seems to be clearly understood by the officers and patrolmen under his Job is to help not harass he said and be try to Stop trouble be fore it starts. 1 think that you la find that our patrolmen although most of them Are Young Are competent to Han dle anything that comes up. But in every Case be try to Bend Over backward to help the Page 13
