European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 05, 1969, Darmstadt, Hesse                                 daily Magazine urts catch up Tor pts by David smothers Dpi staff writer in the riots which followed the assassination of or. Martin Luther King last april 4, according to Justice department figures 21,271 persons were arrested in 76  Baltimore the great majority of those arrested to received Swift Justice some would say,.injustice-Many of them after they were persuaded to waive their Legal rights. But in Chicago about 90 per cent of those indicted were still awaiting trial More than a half year after the  Washington authorities despair of cleaning up the riot cases until next summer. And in Wilmington del., the outcome of some of the More serious cases is clouded by appeals arising from ambiguities in the state s Laws. The conclusion would appear to be that there is Little consistency in the prosecution and punishment of those who join in the rebellions which have tortured the nation s streets in this decade. For some of those arrested in april the punishment amounted to Little More than the inconvenience of a night in  others it was a $25 Bond and nothing More said of the matter. For comparative few it was months in the county jail or years in the  a Small handful it was death but these were the unfortunates who die Don the scene of action casualties of police revolvers or snipers  in custody however a Ritter s chances of getting off on fairly easy terms would appear to be excellent. When a National guard detachment i demobilized it becomes difficult or impossible to locate arresting soldiers let alone get them to take the time to testify. A policeman who May have participated in a score of arrests on a night of rioting May be equally reluctant and As ill prepared to identify his prisoners and make his charge stick in  dim tempers Cool looted merchants think better of pressing charges against neighbourhood custom  once a Ritter is granted Bond the average for a curfew violation or disorderly conduct seems to be about $25 there is no particular pressure on him to return and risk More punish ment. Ateo. There is often utile Assur Ance that be gave his right name in the first place appears the United states sys tem of Justice is ill equipped to Cope quickly or effectively with civic insure Recto and. Mass rests. Kriei Whf in court procedures prove inadequate to process the thousands who we until up in jail during the Days of. The ,. System of Justice is ill equipped to Cope quickly or effectively with Ness  wednesday february 5, 1969 upheaval which followed King s assassination on the Motel Balcony in Memphis. One City Baltimore broke the logjam. State s attorney Charles Moylan called it a Legal Miracle that More than 5,450 persons were prosecuted with in a week or so of the riots. But prominent negro critic compared the Miracle to burning the Constitution. What happened was that 5,512 person were arrested in Baltimore from the Day the riots flared april 6 until the uproar died april 12. Baltimore Justice got to work on april 7. Except in the most flagrant cases the charges against those arrested were listed As curfew violation Misdemeanour or disorderly conduct. These included persons suspected of larceny looting and other felonies. But authorities reasoned that indictment would be hard to come by and convictions difficult to achieve on such charges if for no other reason than the numbers  they settled for the Best they could get. To shifts of municipal and circuit judges began holding trials on a 16-hour a Day basis. Since the riot was still on and police and National guardsmen were occupied elsewhere the police arrest records were admitted As evidence. Defendants were provided with attorneys and a Choice waive their constitutional rights against self incrimination and be tried without an accuser in court or wait in jail until these rights could be accommodated. Most decided to get it Over with. The Drew penalties ranging from $25 fines for the More innocuous forms of cur few violation to 80 to 60 Days in prison for looting. That left 107 persons who were indicted for riot connected crimes. By no vember All but 10 had been tried and60 were found guilty. The charges included arson firing upon policemen an Possession of Molotov cocktails. The punishments ranged through two to six years in prison. Criminal court judge Anselm Sodar no upon sentencing a Man to six years for shooting at. Two policemen said he could not sugar coat rioting As civil  Are acts of criminality. Insurrection and violence in its mos dangerous form the judge said. Nc10 other City checked in a up Survey of riot aftermath could report such a record of prompt  solicitor George Russell a for Mer City judge who is regarded As Likely Man to become Baltimore s first negro mayor headed a study commis Sion to Survey the results. He was not Overly  because the City is burning we can t Burn the Constitution he  made no apologies. He said what we have seen is truly a Lega Miracle. The adaptability and flexibility the court system of Baltimore showed in riot week provides a pattern for the entire  Baltimore provided a pattern it was not followed in other cities afflicted by the Post assassination riots. Scarcely 40 Miles from Baltimore nearly 4,300 persons were arrested in Washington d.c., during riot  More than 4,000 of them punish up Survey indicates Little consistency in prosecution and punishment of rioters. Ment amounted to Standard $25 or afew Days in jail. Scores of persons accused of More serious crimes May no know what is to happen to them until next  were 4,085 arrests in washing ton for disorderly conduct or curfew violation. The routine was to bring the prisoners Book them establish identification of some sort and release those who could come up with $25 Bond. There appears to have been an implicit understanding that anyone who did not mind forfeiting the $25 need no come Back for a hearing. According to the District of Columbia corporation counsel s office which handled the cases this proved to be the most pop ular solution to the problem. Others stayed in jail until it became apparent that they could not come up with the bail. The tendency was to release them on Good Faith and authorities often discovered that was the last they would see of them. When they checked up on their goo Faith prospects they discovered Many had the foresight to give false Nam Sand addresses the . Attorney s office took car of those accused of such felonies As breaking and entering grand and Petty larceny arson firing upon police and just Plain rioting. Matters proceeded slowly. More than six months after the riots,56 cases involving 74 defendants had been dealt with. Of these 37 defendants went to trial 17 were convicted of the charges against them 14 were found guilty on lesser charges and six were found innocent. Thirty two More pleaded guilty and five cases were dismissed. That left 165 cases pending. , attorney Alfre Hantman the Man in charge of the prosecutions Fig Thi stars and stripes ured that at the rate things were going his office might get the riot cases cleaned up by next  the record a Man involved in the prosecutions confided that Washington judges were unhappy with the glut of riot trials. Most judges hearing the cases he said Felt they were clutter ing up the court calendars and delaying prosecution of More serious offences. Possibly As a result the sentence imposed did not tend to be Tough. Item the minimum sentence for breaking and entering in the District of Columbia is 8 to 24 months. Many defendants Gotoff with just 8 months and some were granted immediate parole. Al he Box score for Chicago rarely regarded As a town tolerant of rioters was Little  were 3,120 persons arrested in a week of flames and gunfire and of these 720 were indicted for felonies. By the november Check Point just 74 of these had been dealt with and 41 of them had been put on  2,400 who were not indicted wound up booked on the usual mis Demeanour charges and were either fined or released a Good share of cases were dropped because guardsmen were unavailable or tradesmen unwilling to testify. The riots at Wilmington del., were Small by comparison but nevertheless the National guard was called out and702 persons were arrested. Of these the most significant were 23persons indicted on charges of inciting riot. But the wheels of Justice promptly became clogged. The 1967 state riot statute under which the 23 were indicted is under attack on constitutional grounds and it is expected to be a considerable time before the Delaware supreme court makes a ruling. Page 11