DELINQUENCY 



The police department of San Diego numbers 90 men, or in the 

 proportion of one to about 900 inhabitants. San Diego compares 

 favorably with Eastern cities in this respect, the general stand- 

 ard in the East being one officer to each thousand inhabitants. 



About a year ago, the police department gave commercialized 

 vice a telling blow when they closed the restricted, or "Stingaree" 

 district, and drove the women and their male companions who 

 were profiting from vice, from town. A number of the close 

 packed cribs in which the women plied their trade were torn 

 down. Since then the police have maintained this policy, direct- 

 ed against the segregation of vice and its implied sanction under 

 the law. At present certain hotels and a number of rooming 

 houses are under suspicion as the resort of prostitutes, and the 

 men who trade with them. Only a thorough investigation will 

 reveal present conditions in the city. 



County Jail 



The new county jail is a model of its kind and efficiently man- 

 aged. The worst feature of the jail is that its inmates are kept 

 in idleness, except for a few trusties, who do the necessary work 

 of cleaning up. A chain gang from the jail formerly worked on 

 the outside, but this practice was discontinued, it is understood, 

 because of the citizens' protests against parading the men before 

 the public. This is a short-sighted policy. Effort should be made 

 to put the "honor" men at least at work at county road build- 

 ing. This is being attempted in one other county in this state, 

 to the writer's knowledge, and is becoming more and more the 

 practice in the Middle West. The men serve an average sentence 

 of six months. No reading matter is provided them excepting 

 magazines. In New York State, the state prison association pro- 

 vides libraries in the different prisons. 



At the city lock-up, six men were confined at the time of the 

 writer's visit, who had been sentenced for minor offenses and 

 for short terms, in the city police court. They "asked to be kept 

 at the lock-up instead of at the county jail because they can 

 get more privileges." These men were being kept in idleness 

 excepting for the work of cleaning up about the lock-up. One or 

 possibly two men would be sufficient for such work. The re- 

 mainder should be transferred to the county jail. 



Juvenile Court 



The judge of the Juvenile Court hears all cases of girl de- 

 linquents in his private chambers. Hearings of boy delinquents 

 are held in a large court room in the county court house, and 

 court proceedings are carried on in an informal manner. The 

 boys' cases might better be held, as are the girls,' in a small 



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