ASKS MORE STUDY OF SEX OFFENDER

Pathologist Gives Advice at Safety Group Launching

BY JOSEPHINE ROBERTSON

If Ohio is to deal effectively with criminals who attack women and children on the streets or in other public places it will have to provide sufficient and suitable places for confining and studying such offenders, Dr. Alan R. Moritz, professor of pathology. Western Reserve University, said yesterday.

He addressed several hundred citizens at a luncheon at the Women's City Club, called to launch a citizens street safety committee, of which Curtis Lee Smith was announced as chairman.

Dr. Moritz said he understood that Ohio had a totally inadequate mechanism for dealing with sex criminals and that the police force of Cleveland was handicapped in picking up sex offenders because its organization was short by 700

men.

He suggested the possibility for a special unit at police headquarters for studying the sex criminal, where police and psychiatrists could co-operate.

Sees Crime Increasing

locked up he seems the best kind of fellow, most useful in the library and chapel. He is soon up for parole and let out.

"Twenty-four hours later he has committed another rape and murder. He will repeat his crime as often as he has opportunity. In

Dr. Moritz expressed the belief Massachusetts a man committed that sex offenses were increasing his seventh rape by violence three numerically and would continue to days after being let out for good increase for some time, perhaps behavior. longer than after World War I.

"Criminals in this class should

He called it a mistake to consider be locked up indefinitely. They all sex offenses together. suffer from what is equivalent to "The most common offender. a disease. Usually it does no good who substitutes exhibitionism for to punish them.

a normal sex life, is not very "The law should provide a dangerous, but rather offensive," mechanism whereby persons guilty Dr. Moritz said lof sex offense could be brought "The peeper who haunts the before expert psychiatrists for apperiphery of parking lots and praisal. Psychiatrists are best looks in windows is usually harm-able to distinguish the harmless less but deserves careful psychi-from the harmful and to say what atric examination. He may become should be done to protect society."| a dangerous fellow.

"Then there are those offenders who snatch at a woman's clothing, cut off a lock of hair, drench her with excrement, because of compulsion.

"In Boston there was recurring trouble because women entering a large apartment building were deluged from above with garbage. They were all obese, middle-aged. overdressed.

Nab Retired Banker

"A watch was set, and a retired banker was caught. He had made an erotic substitution. Such people should be appraised carefully and expertly to see if their disease is progressive."

Other types of sex offenses he discussed were those against children, either heterosexual or homosexual, with or without battery, and provoked and unprovoked

rape.

"The offender in the latter crime is either psychotic or psychopathic," Dr. Moritz said. "He must seduce with violence and against resistance. The devilish thing about him is that when