Recent Book: Watch Out ….: The Cleveland Street Scandal
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X7805100228 |
| Author | Daniel P. King |
| Date | 01 April 1978 |
| Published date | 01 April 1978 |
| Subject Matter | Recent Book |
The section on the Judges rules
dismisses them as far as "civilians" are
concerned by stating rule 6, and saying
"It
is essential security staff should
have a knowledge of them". But these
are minor points in what is to me a
sensible, easily read work which will
be of assistance to anyone looking for
a career in retail security. A.S.
MAKE IT BIG!
MICHAEL
J.
COMER:
Corporate Fraud. McGraw-Hili. £8.95.
This book is designed more for the
big company to put it on its guard to
the ways in which it can rapidly be
reduced to insolvency by some of its
more devious employees than it is for
the investigating officer.
Not
that the latter will not learn
something from its pages (as will the
smaller company) particularly from
the chapter on computer fraud - a
field in which we have not a surplus of
experienced investigators as yet.
It
is strange how the fraudsman is
always treated with sympathy, almost
affection by not only the detective, the
court but even by the prison authori-
ties.
Far
better the odd thousand by mis-
programming the computer than risk-
ing a heavy sentence (well, sometimes l)
by mugging old ladies for the odd
pound or 50 pence.
An interesting book.
AEOlUS
SCIENTIFIC SHERLOCKS
DAVID
ELLEN:
Science and Crime Detection. Wheaton. £1.20.
In the beginning there was a Police
Officer who survived by his native wit
and cunning, sometimes aided by a
Forensic Pathologist. Now he has
another arm, the Forensic Scientist
who places before the Courts specific
scientific facts which are not only im-
pressive, but convincing. The cliche,
"missed by a hair", may literally des-
cribe the differences between success
and failure in a criminal investigation.
A single hair, fibre, speck of blood or
sliver of glass often leads the jury
beyond reasonable doubt.
How
well this book, another in the
series "Science and
...
", describes the
techniques and expertise of the Forensic
Scientist. As a starter for the young
student, it is ideal, and junior Police
Officers could also benefit from the
knowledge imparted.
The presentation, illustrations and
photographs are first class; one in
particular, showing stress marks on
broken glass, reminded me of an
alleged burglary many years ago when
ahouseholder attempted to "stage" a
forcible entry at his own home for
Insurance purposes. He made the
mistake of breaking the glass of his
French windows from inside the house.
I hope the young readers do not
think the Police clutter up a potential
murder scene as shown on the front
cover - poetic licence perhaps? They
can also play detective and spot the
deliberate mistake - is it a woman's
body lying beside the
pond?
At least
this perhaps illustrates the difference
between the operational Policeman and
the Scientist. The former views scenes
and exhibits with normal vision, but
the Scientist has far greater powers of
magnification at his disposal.
In 1920, Sir John Moylan, Receiver
of the Metropolitan Police, said,
"The
detection and investigation of crime in
England and Wales rests with the
Police, and so does it's prosecution,
but where Scotland yard has not lead
the way, is in regard to laboratory
work", and mentioned existing labora-
tories in Vienna, Prague, Berlin, Paris
and New York, etc. This was eventu-
ally
put
right in 1935 and now we are
served by a number of laboratories
throughout the United Kingdom in-
cluding the most recent, and one of the
world's largest, in London, whose
expertise is aptly and concisely des-
cribed by David Ellen. X.D.
WATCHOUT
••••
H.
MONTGOMERY
HYDE:
The Cleveland Street Scandal.
Coward, McCann &Geoghegan. $8.95.
This is a first-class account of a ding Prince Albert Victor, Lord
West London homosexual scandal in Euston, and Lord
Arthur
Somerset.
1886-91 which involved a number of
It
is a sordid story of male prostitution,
noteworthy British aristocrats inclu- contradictions in Victorian morals,
217 April 1978
To continue reading
Request your trial