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Saturday, January 28, 2006

1901: A FIRING RANGE FOR TRENTON'S FINEST

I manually transcribed this article back in the 1970's. With the arrival of the new century, Chief Hiner was anticipating a growing city of Trenton, and with that growth, the need to re-shape and sharpen his force.


CHIEF HINER RECOMMENDS A SHOOTING RANGE
AUGUST 11, 1901, DAILY TRUE AMERICAN
Chief Hiner recommended the erection of signal lights throughout the city that can be readily seen by the police officers on their posts, thus bringing them into quicker communication with their respective districts. The recent escapade a young patrol officer had with a burglar when he emptied his revolver at the thief without a shot taking effect has prompted Chief Hiner to ask for the erection of a shooting range. The new men on the force have practically had no experience in handling weapons, and the installation of a revolver range would no doubt prove a big benefit to the department. Hiner's report showed the addition of 12 men to the force during the year, as the result of the annexed territory. During the year, 3,036 persons were arrested, against 2,334 for the previous year;
an increase of 702.
Although the number of arrests has increased, the records show a decided falling off in the number of serious offenses. Chief Hiner says there is very little gambling going on in the city. Poker is played somewhat, but after an investigation, the department found that it is powerless to prevent it. The installation of an automobile wagon would greatly lessen the expense now attached to the patrol service. It could be used by mounted police in patrolling the suburban districts. The large amount of new territory which has recently been annexed to the city is extremely difficult for the men to patrol on foot, and it will be not at all surprising if the board decides to station mounted police in these outlying sections.

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