Q CRACKDOWN ON THE H
Authorities and the public are learning how to cope
with this sick pest who uses the phone to annoy, threaten, insult
TELEPHONE CRANK
THE TELEPHONE RINGS. A housewife
answers it A distinct click at the
other end indicates that the connection
has been broken.
Who wu it? Someone with wrong number?
An unwelcome salesman checking to make sure
he is home?
The phone rings again. This time the connec
tion remains open, but the caller remains silent.
The housewife hangs up. The sequence is repeat
ed. This can be a nerve-racking experience. It
can become terrifying if the anonymous caller
speaks, mumbling something incoherent or ob
scene, or makes indecent suggestions.
At this point, a woman knows that she has
been singled out by a phone crank, a member of
a growing army of individuals who make thou
sands of such phone calls in the United States
each day. In one Eastern city, telephone officials
estimate that more than 60,000 anonymous calls
clog their lines each year.
Fortunately, the majority of anonymous phone
calls are not of the dangerous variety. Some
phone cranks, however, are afflicted by psycho
logical disorders and use the telephone to work
off emotional frustrations or satisfy some mental
aberration. Envy or revenge also is a motive
behind the crank call.
One afternoon, in a Midwest suburb, a young
housewife answered her phone, and as she lis
tened her hand began to tremble. "It's my hus
band's office," the distraught woman whispered
to a visitor. "He has just had a heart attack."
The wife called the police and was rushed down
town where she found her husband sitting calm
ly at his desk, very much alive. She was so
shocked that medical attention was required.
A similar call was made to the same home a
week later and, through use of a new detecting
device, was traced to a neighbor who was envious
of the family's financial position.
By JACK EICHOLZ
and LOUISE ALLEN
Some anonymous phone calls originate with
sexually immature individuals. Such a caller may
demand that the housewife meet him for love
tryst "You'd better come," he threatens, "or
something will happen to your son on the way
to school."
According to one psychologist, this caller is
closely related to the Peeping Tom or the indecent-exposure
sex offender. These types of men
are so afraid of women that they have to ap
proach them from a distance.
Most persons who become the victims of crank
callers hope that the aggressor will become tired
of his game and give up. Frequently this is the
case, but sometimes the crank persists.
In a Cleveland suburb, for example, a 66-year-old
woman was apprehended and convicted of
making 13,800 voiceless phone calls over an 18
year period. She would begin her calls at 2 am
and dial the number of some 20 of her former
neighbors against whom she bore resentment As
soon as a connection was made, she would hang
up and call the next victim.
What 18 being done to nab phone cranks?
In the Chicago area, a device records the
fact that a certain station is making many calls
each day to another subscriber. When the second
phone subscriber is notified, she is given the
name of the originating station if she requests
it Legal action may be initiated by the person
if the calls are annoying.
' Another innovation is the "trapping circuit"
which is effective in smaller cities and towns.
The device is activated by the mere push of a
button and "locks" any phone connection. The
line remains open until the source of the call can
be determined by the telephone company.
Preventive action by police and public utilities
companies is often hampered because in some
areas telephoning for malicious purposes is not
illegal Even where there are laws, penalties fre
quently are light A common penalty for a con
victed crank caller usually involves a suspended
sentence and a fine of from $25 to $100.
What course of action should you follow if you
become the victim of a phone psychopath?
Some intrepid women, harassed by a phone
crank, decide to set a trap for the caller by ar
ranging the meeting he suggests. Such action can
be dangerous, especially if the caller happens to
be psychotic. Never initiate such action without
the cooperation of police.
For the average subscriber who becomes the
victim of a crank caller, the following sugges
tions may prove helpful:
1. If you are greeted by silence, don't panic
If you simply hang up, the crank may give up
after a few tries.
2. If the caller speaks, don't become angry.
Calmly try to get clues to his identity. If you
have a tape recorder, use it to record his voice
and then give him a playback. This may halt his
calls. Turn the tapes over to police for further
identification of his voice.
3. If someone calls you with a report of in
jury or death, have the caller identify himself
or ask for his number so that you can call back
to verify the facts.
4. If the calls become a real nuisance, get an
answering service to screen them. A telephone
pest won't persist if he can't get through to you.
5. If you know of someone who makes such
calls, report him promptly so that he can be
given psychiatric help before he causes harm.
Authorities are beginning to get the phone
crank's number, thanks to science. But it is still
the public that can do the most to silence him.
COVER:
John Engttead photograph Gina Martin
(with her famous actor-dad Dean Martin)
in a brilliant peacock-blue tailor drttt,
one of tix creation from her new echool
wardrobe. All available in patterns, p. S.
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