How many people have been lost?
As a San Diegan, I have seen that when you go into a police museum, or click on a history page of a police station, you wont hear much about their victims. They don't talk about any of the bad stuff, where they have blindly turned innocent people into victims. If there is any bad press, they simply ignore it, or discredit it, or even in some extreme cases, threaten journalists in the hopes that the bad press goes away.
It made me think: how many times has that worked?
How many times have people been unnecessarily slaughtered in order to maintain an image? How many times have we been lied to by our own story tellers?
How many times have people been unnecessarily slaughtered in order to maintain an image? How many times have we been lied to by our own story tellers?
As someone who has dealt with local media, I have seen what they can do to an issue you care about and so had long before decided to use my website and reach to spread a... let's say "unauthorized", but true story of law enforcement in the U.S. as well as in San Diego County. The following is the result of years of research combined with modern first hand protest experience.
However I feel that before I tell this this story, I must dedicate it to all of the people who have died in San Diego county whose names have been forgotten. Each life is important. A person who is 18 years old has been born, cleaned, clothed, groomed and fed by somebody. Somebody cared for this person and all of a sudden, a jumpy officer arrives and "fearing for their lives", shoots this 18 year old and kills them.
So every neighbor, teacher, parent, baby-sitter, family member and friend of this 18 year old are now affected. It becomes a community problem because the community sees potential corruption and want answers, however in most cases throughout American history, the ruling authority has never been accountable for its past. How did we get this way, allow me to tell you how we did:
So every neighbor, teacher, parent, baby-sitter, family member and friend of this 18 year old are now affected. It becomes a community problem because the community sees potential corruption and want answers, however in most cases throughout American history, the ruling authority has never been accountable for its past. How did we get this way, allow me to tell you how we did:
Origins of Law Enforcement in the United States
Reeves and Shires
Hundreds of years ago, the Kingdom of England was broken down into a number of what were called "shires", later renamed to "counties". Each shire would elect their own special person to carry out duties on behalf of the crown, such as serve orders, enforce rules and regulations, or collect taxes. These people were called "reeves". Over time the words "shire" and "reeve" would come together to become "sheriff". The sheriff was important to the Crown, but so powerful that when King John of England was forced to sign the Magna Carta in 1215, twenty-seven of its sixty-three clauses had to do with limiting their powers. Once elected, a sheriff can deputize others, who then become sheriff deputies and they in turn would form posses to fight crime.
The sheriff would use local militias at times to help keep the piece, though they were often routy and hard to control. A sheriff's jurisdiction is within the county in which they were elected.
Hundreds of years ago, the Kingdom of England was broken down into a number of what were called "shires", later renamed to "counties". Each shire would elect their own special person to carry out duties on behalf of the crown, such as serve orders, enforce rules and regulations, or collect taxes. These people were called "reeves". Over time the words "shire" and "reeve" would come together to become "sheriff". The sheriff was important to the Crown, but so powerful that when King John of England was forced to sign the Magna Carta in 1215, twenty-seven of its sixty-three clauses had to do with limiting their powers. Once elected, a sheriff can deputize others, who then become sheriff deputies and they in turn would form posses to fight crime.
The sheriff would use local militias at times to help keep the piece, though they were often routy and hard to control. A sheriff's jurisdiction is within the county in which they were elected.
Slavery
The first "indentured servants" (slaves) came to Jamestown in 1607. "Indentured servitude" was allowed under the English's "Headright system", an agreement to provide seven years of free labor in return for a trip to the Americas and after the seven years was up, the "servant" was freed and given a plot of land to start their own farm. Yet, about half of the "servants" that arrived wouldn't survive in Virginia's climate and many that did would have their "servitude" extended for various reasons. England had been sending its orphans and unwanted poor to the Americas for only a short time, but soon some of them stopped being poor. They learned how to exploit others and made a lot of money bringing people over and working them to death, then passed that tradition to others.
The first "indentured servants" (slaves) came to Jamestown in 1607. "Indentured servitude" was allowed under the English's "Headright system", an agreement to provide seven years of free labor in return for a trip to the Americas and after the seven years was up, the "servant" was freed and given a plot of land to start their own farm. Yet, about half of the "servants" that arrived wouldn't survive in Virginia's climate and many that did would have their "servitude" extended for various reasons. England had been sending its orphans and unwanted poor to the Americas for only a short time, but soon some of them stopped being poor. They learned how to exploit others and made a lot of money bringing people over and working them to death, then passed that tradition to others.
The idea of the sheriff was also exported to the North American Eastern Seaboard, and the first sheriff was Captain William Stone who was appointed in 1634 to the Shire of Northampton, Virginia. There was a landmark court case in 1655 called "Johnson vs. Parker" where the two disputed whether an "indentured servant" named John Casor still belonged to Anthony Johnson, or was free to work for Robert Parker. The outcome affirmed that Casor did in fact belong to Johnson for life and it suddenly became safer to call "indentured servants" what they really were: slaves.
As an Independent Union
The United States would officially gain its independence from England in 1783 with the Treaty of Paris, about seven years after the Second Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence. Twenty three years later in 1799, the state of New York decided to free slave children who were born after July 4th of that year. Ohio abolished slavery in 1802 and New Jersey gradually did so starting in 1804. When Thomas Jefferson bought the Louisiana Territory that same year though, tensions began to rise over whether or not the new territories would allow slavery.
Thomas Jefferson called for criminalizing the slave trade in 1806 and factions soon emerged. By 1820, these factions in Congress compromised on the issue of slavery: In the new Louisiana territory, minus the future lands of Missouri on parallel 36°30′ south, slavery would be prohibited. In return, Maine would enter the Union as a free state. When Mexico gained their independence from Spain the following year, they decided to abolish slavery, but many slave owners living there got around this by declaring their slaves as “indentured servants”.
Thomas Jefferson called for criminalizing the slave trade in 1806 and factions soon emerged. By 1820, these factions in Congress compromised on the issue of slavery: In the new Louisiana territory, minus the future lands of Missouri on parallel 36°30′ south, slavery would be prohibited. In return, Maine would enter the Union as a free state. When Mexico gained their independence from Spain the following year, they decided to abolish slavery, but many slave owners living there got around this by declaring their slaves as “indentured servants”.
The First Detectives
As populations swelled in the United States and the industrial revolution took hold in the northern states, it became more difficult for the sheriff and his deputies to keep order in a single county. As night watches began to spring up across the northern states, workers kept going on strike for higher pay and safer working conditions. Instead of negotiating with them, the factories would simply hire more workers, who would cross the picket lines to work. To protect the strike breakers, factories hired private police from a firm called the Pinkerton National Detective Agency to escort them to the factories.
Created in Chicago in 1850, the Pinkerton National Detective Agency (or the "Pinkertons") were one of the first private police agencies created and its creator, Allen Pinkerton would go on to lead Abraham Lincoln's private security on several occasions (excluding that night of his assassination, as the Secret Service was established earlier that day by Lincoln's pen, but not for Presidential or personal protection, but to combat money fraud). As they escorted strike breakers to their factories, the Pinkertons would often beat pro union workers. The Pinkertons were also the first to use mugshots and would hold the largest collection of them.
As populations swelled in the United States and the industrial revolution took hold in the northern states, it became more difficult for the sheriff and his deputies to keep order in a single county. As night watches began to spring up across the northern states, workers kept going on strike for higher pay and safer working conditions. Instead of negotiating with them, the factories would simply hire more workers, who would cross the picket lines to work. To protect the strike breakers, factories hired private police from a firm called the Pinkerton National Detective Agency to escort them to the factories.
Created in Chicago in 1850, the Pinkerton National Detective Agency (or the "Pinkertons") were one of the first private police agencies created and its creator, Allen Pinkerton would go on to lead Abraham Lincoln's private security on several occasions (excluding that night of his assassination, as the Secret Service was established earlier that day by Lincoln's pen, but not for Presidential or personal protection, but to combat money fraud). As they escorted strike breakers to their factories, the Pinkertons would often beat pro union workers. The Pinkertons were also the first to use mugshots and would hold the largest collection of them.
Mexican American War
From 1846 -1848, the United States was at war with Mexico and as a result of Texas' annexation with the US. By the end of that war, the United States gained what was known as Alta California and Nueva Mexico territory. This is especially important because San Diego lies at the border between Alta and Baja California, splitting the native Kumeyaay tribe in half. We will get more into the consequences of the U.S. takeover of California in a later chapter.
From 1846 -1848, the United States was at war with Mexico and as a result of Texas' annexation with the US. By the end of that war, the United States gained what was known as Alta California and Nueva Mexico territory. This is especially important because San Diego lies at the border between Alta and Baja California, splitting the native Kumeyaay tribe in half. We will get more into the consequences of the U.S. takeover of California in a later chapter.
Slave Catchers
Meanwhile in the 1850s, the southern states remained agricultural and full of African slaves. These slaves would occasionally escape into the northern states, where slavery had been banned. To help prevent this, some white southern residents would take it upon themselves to become fugitive slave catchers and started slave patrols. They didn't just limit their duties to catching runaway slaves however, they would also be the judge, jury and executioner of slaves who simply wandered too far from the tree line. In cases where a slaves life is spared, they are still usually beaten to a pulp.
Meanwhile in the 1850s, the southern states remained agricultural and full of African slaves. These slaves would occasionally escape into the northern states, where slavery had been banned. To help prevent this, some white southern residents would take it upon themselves to become fugitive slave catchers and started slave patrols. They didn't just limit their duties to catching runaway slaves however, they would also be the judge, jury and executioner of slaves who simply wandered too far from the tree line. In cases where a slaves life is spared, they are still usually beaten to a pulp.
If you like movies and aren't sensitive to violence, I recommend watching the 2016 movie Birth of a Nation. It's based on a true story and the man who beat Nat Turner's wife into a lumpy pulp was a slave catcher (played by Jackie Earle Haley).
The First Police
Philadelphia was the first city in the United States to organize a police force in 1833, followed by Houston in 1841. New York followed in 1845, New Orleans in 1853 and Baltimore in 1857. The main difference with police was that instead of being elected or deputized, they are hired, not by a factory or by a wealthy citizen, but by a city. As more and more cities started their own police forces, many deputies, Pinkertons, night watches, and slave patrols would be hired into them.
Philadelphia was the first city in the United States to organize a police force in 1833, followed by Houston in 1841. New York followed in 1845, New Orleans in 1853 and Baltimore in 1857. The main difference with police was that instead of being elected or deputized, they are hired, not by a factory or by a wealthy citizen, but by a city. As more and more cities started their own police forces, many deputies, Pinkertons, night watches, and slave patrols would be hired into them.
Roots of the U.S. Civil War
While this was all going on, civil war between the states loomed very real in the background. Acquiring the southwest would become more expensive than anticipated. With California entering the Union as a State in 1850, in conjunction with the population boom in industrial northern cities, congressional power in both the House and the Senate then switched towards the northern states. This would cause Democrats in the southern states to freak out and take drastic measures to take back control.
Media in the 1850s would also raise tensions. Uncle Tom's Cabin was published in 1852, and sold hundred of thousands of copies. The book opened many people's eyes on the hardships of slavery and took a lot of criticism by the southern states for it. By 1854, Congress came out with the Kansas-Nebraska compromise, which drew a line from Missouri to the border of California, allowing slavery south of that line, with a provision of popular sovereignty.
Sectional tensions started to became violent in May 22, 1856 when two days after Senator Charles Sumner gave an impassioned antislavery speech, a Representative named Preston Brooks beat him with a cane in the Senate Chamber. Really, he came up to him, shared few words and went to town, beating Sumner up. He beat him so bad; Brooks broke his cane and nearly killed Sumner. That same year, a new political party, the Republicans, put out their first presidential candidate: John C. Freemont from California. The Republican Party became known as an abolitionist party when it came to slavery.
Sectional tensions started to became violent in May 22, 1856 when two days after Senator Charles Sumner gave an impassioned antislavery speech, a Representative named Preston Brooks beat him with a cane in the Senate Chamber. Really, he came up to him, shared few words and went to town, beating Sumner up. He beat him so bad; Brooks broke his cane and nearly killed Sumner. That same year, a new political party, the Republicans, put out their first presidential candidate: John C. Freemont from California. The Republican Party became known as an abolitionist party when it came to slavery.
Sectional tensions got even worse on March 6, 1857 when the Supreme Court struck the Kansas-Nebraska Compromise down as unconstitutional in the Dred Scott v. Sandford decision. It did so by declaring that Scott, a slave and a black man, could not sue for his freedom after entering a free state with his master, because Scott was not considered a citizen of the United States, he was considered property instead. They also talked about how “dangerous” it would be if the “negros” became citizens:
“It would give to persons of the negro race, who were recognized as citizens in any one State of the Union, the right to enter every other State whenever they pleased, singly or in companies, without pass or passport, and without obstruction, to sojourn there as long as they pleased, to go where they pleased at every hour of the day or night without molestation, unless they committed some violation of law for which a white man would be punished; and it would give them full liberty of speech in public and in private upon all subjects upon which its [a slave State's] own citizens might speak; to hold public meetings upon public affairs, and to keep and carry arms wherever they went. And all of this would be done in the face of the subject race of the same color, both free and slaves, and inevitably producing discontent and insubordination among them, and endangering the peace and safety of the State.”
-Chief Justice Roger B. Taney of the United States Supreme Court, Dred Scott V. Sandford, 1857
By now, the Republican Party had established itself with a platform against the spread of slavery, and just short of supporting abolition.
In October of 1859, the same year the African slave trade ended, a white man named John Brown, along with twenty-five others, entered Jefferson County, Virginia, with the intent of raiding an armory in Harper’s Ferry. Brown was an abolitionist who was hoping to break into an armory and give stolen guns to run-away slaves in order start a full scale slave revolt. When the raid started though, he received little help. President James Buchanan called in a unit of Marines to quell the rebellion. A "hero" of the Mexican American War named Colonel Robert E. Lee, led the unit.
Brown didn’t last long, his small band of fighters were killed and when he tried to make a final stand, the Marines broke in and he was subdued. He was taken to Charlestown, VA, tried and sentenced to death by hanging. About two thousand people had arrived in Charlestown to participate in or witness the execution, including some notable figures, as Nora Titone writes in “My Thoughts be Bloody”:
In October of 1859, the same year the African slave trade ended, a white man named John Brown, along with twenty-five others, entered Jefferson County, Virginia, with the intent of raiding an armory in Harper’s Ferry. Brown was an abolitionist who was hoping to break into an armory and give stolen guns to run-away slaves in order start a full scale slave revolt. When the raid started though, he received little help. President James Buchanan called in a unit of Marines to quell the rebellion. A "hero" of the Mexican American War named Colonel Robert E. Lee, led the unit.
Brown didn’t last long, his small band of fighters were killed and when he tried to make a final stand, the Marines broke in and he was subdued. He was taken to Charlestown, VA, tried and sentenced to death by hanging. About two thousand people had arrived in Charlestown to participate in or witness the execution, including some notable figures, as Nora Titone writes in “My Thoughts be Bloody”:
“Thomas J. (Stonewall) Jackson watched the scene intently, noting that the coffin was a handsome affair of dark walnut, protected by a poplar crate. Brown was conveyed a short distance out of town to an open pasture where his gallows loomed… John Wilkes (Booth) had been awake since dawn, along with the other Richmond Greys. They lined up by height close to the scaffold, no more than 30 feet away, and stood at attention in the rough grass.”
When the 22-year-old Booth learned of the looming execution, he ditched his role at the Marshall Theater, obtained a uniform and snuck on a train to Charlestown. He stayed there for two weeks, standing watch with the Richmond Greys and performing Shakespeare for troops at night. On the morning of the execution, December 2nd, he had a perfect view of the gallows. As soon as he saw Brown step onto the platform, Booth started feeling sorry for the man:
“Booth watched Brown scan the tree-line hemming the field. No mob armed with hand grenades made its appearance. The surrounding forest was undisturbed. Watching comprehension dawn on Brown’s face, John Wilkes later said he felt ‘a throb of anguish in his chest’. ‘He was a brave old man’, John Wilkes told Asa, ‘his heart must have broken when he felt himself deserted’. Brown may have been a villain and a vigilante, but John Wilkes could not help honoring the man for his courage.”
Others around Booth noted the agitation in his face; it could have been that he was reminded of his own father, who had lived a rough life, or it could have just been his first execution. However, despite the abandonment, Brown was acting differently from what Booth had thought – Brown quietly cooperated and showed no fear. There was some difficulty getting the ropes to properly function, so the executioner decided to take an axe to them. It worked and the trap door dropped, sending John Brown to his demise. Watching Brown die affected Booth. The agitation on his face had changed into a look of sickness. He was trembling, and said he felt faint. Stonewall Jackson would later write of Brown’s death:
“His arms below the elbows flew up horizontally. His hands clenched, and his arms gradually fell, but by spasmodic motions. Only then did a strong wind blow the lifeless body to and fro.”
Then Abraham Lincoln was elected. The southerns states didn't like him.
The American Civil War began and was fought mostly over the issue of slavery. Lincoln had been elected November 6, 1860. By December 20th, before he was even inaugurated, South Carolina declared their independence from the Union. Mississippi soon left on January 9 1961, followed by Florida on the 10th, Alabama on the 11th, Georgia on the 19th, Louisiana on the 26th, and Texas on February 1st. These states then joined to create the Confederate States of America, which was born on February 8th.
Back at the Capitol during Lincoln’s inaugural address, on March 4, 1861, his message to the South ended:
The American Civil War began and was fought mostly over the issue of slavery. Lincoln had been elected November 6, 1860. By December 20th, before he was even inaugurated, South Carolina declared their independence from the Union. Mississippi soon left on January 9 1961, followed by Florida on the 10th, Alabama on the 11th, Georgia on the 19th, Louisiana on the 26th, and Texas on February 1st. These states then joined to create the Confederate States of America, which was born on February 8th.
Back at the Capitol during Lincoln’s inaugural address, on March 4, 1861, his message to the South ended:
“We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection.”
Later that month, Confederate Vice President Alexander H. Stephens gave a speech in Savannah, Georgia in what is known as the “Cornerstone Speech”, declaring that the separation was specifically over the issue of slavery:
“The new constitution has put at rest, forever, all the agitating questions relating to our peculiar institution African slavery as it exists amongst us the proper status of the negro in our form of civilization. This was the immediate cause of the late rupture and present revolution. Jefferson in his forecast, had anticipated this, as the “rock upon which the old Union would split.” He was right. What was conjecture with him, is now a realized fact… The prevailing ideas entertained by him and most of the leading statesmen at the time of the formation of the old constitution, were that the enslavement of the African was in violation of the laws of nature… Our new government is founded upon exactly the opposite idea; its foundations are laid, its corner- stone rests, upon the great truth that the negro is not equal to the white man; that slavery subordination to the superior race is his natural and normal condition. This, our new government, is the first, in the history of the world, based upon this great physical, philosophical, and moral truth. This truth has been slow in the process of its development, like all other truths in the various departments of science.”
The Confederates were taking a huge risk. They had tried to preserve the institution of slavery by law and ballet and failed. Violence would be the next step.
Reconstruction
After the end of the Civil War in 1865, the Union army had occupied the southern states and split the confederacy into five military districts. Those districts forced each state to recreate their own governments, but they now had to include African Americans. This meant that now, African Americans could now participate in their local government.
There were differing ideas about how the federal government would handle the captured districts. Lincoln himself wanted to simply forgive the rebellious states and allow them to re-enter the Union with little punishment. He also wanted to further protect the rights of African Americans and was instrumental in passing the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution which MOSTLY abolished slavery.
After Lincoln's assassination, Andrew Johnson took over as President. Johnson was harsh with the confederates, but also opposed giving citizenship to former slaves. The 14th Amendment, which did give all free men citizenship was ratified in 1868, despite Johnson's veto, and one of the conditions for re-entering the Union was that each southern state would have to ratify it. The last amendment to be passed during this time was the 15th Amendment in 1870, which outlawed discrimination at the polls.
The advancement of African Americans into citizenship and government positions angered many southern whites who, in 1866, joined together to create a terrorist organization called the Klu-Klux Klan. These groups used terror techniques such as beatings, murders and cross burnings to keep African Americans and those who supported them from making it to the polls. The techniques worked and with less Republicans voting, the Democrats took local governments in the southern states.
The 1876 Presidential election between Republican Rutherford B. Hayes and Democrat Samuel J Tilden ended with disputed electoral votes in three southern states: South Carolina, Louisiana, and Florida. The Republican congress set up a committee to decided who would win the Executive Office and in the negotiations, Republicans agreed to allows the Democrats to take back control of the southern states, promised to build a transcontinental railroad through Texas, and promised not to meddle in the south's affairs. For the first time, but not the last, the Republican party has turned a blind eye to the plight of the very African Americans they once helped to free.
In return for the South, Rutherford B Hayes was declared President elect, and Union troops finally left the south. Reconstruction was now over and it has officially failed.
In return for the South, Rutherford B Hayes was declared President elect, and Union troops finally left the south. Reconstruction was now over and it has officially failed.
Moving Towards Civil Rights
By the end of Reconstruction, police in southern states enforced a series of vagrancy laws and black codes that were passed by state legislatures after the Civil War to keep the disenfranchised, including the newly freed slaves, from advancing economically or having true freedom. For instance, after the Civil War, the South suffered a shortage of labor. Eight southern states established "convict leasing", the hiring of prisoners for laborious jobs. People suspected of being jobless were arrested and leased to plantations or businesses for work. African Americas weren't allowed to own property or businesses of their own and they were kept from voting or taking office.
In 1892 a New Orleans man named Homer Plessy decided to challenge these laws. Plessy boarded a first class white train and was asked to move to the "blacks only" train, he refused and was arrested. He sued and the suit made it to the Supreme Court, resulting in the Plessy vs. Ferguson decision. Not only did Plessy lose the case, but the case legitimized the establishment of "separate but equal" codes, beginning the era of the Jim Crowe Laws.
1900s
Until the dawn of the Civil Rights movement, State and local officials established laws separating blacks and whites from schools, cafes, universities, churches, restrooms and even drinking fountains. Discrimination against African Americans prevented adequate funding for schools and stopped them from being hired at high paying jobs or buying homes in prominent neighborhoods. The murder and lynching of African Americans continued without those responsible being arrested or charged. In many cases, law enforcement was complicity in the murders.
Until the dawn of the Civil Rights movement, State and local officials established laws separating blacks and whites from schools, cafes, universities, churches, restrooms and even drinking fountains. Discrimination against African Americans prevented adequate funding for schools and stopped them from being hired at high paying jobs or buying homes in prominent neighborhoods. The murder and lynching of African Americans continued without those responsible being arrested or charged. In many cases, law enforcement was complicity in the murders.
By 1953, racial prejudices ran rampant throughout the whole country, especially in the south. Once again the laws were challenged. The parents of a little girl named Linda Brown sued the board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, in order to place her in a school that was close to home but for whites. The Brown vs. Board of Education decision of 1954 overturned the decision left by Plessy vs. Ferguson. The Supreme Court had decided that keeping children separate simply due to skin color made them feel inferior, affected their development and deprived them of equal protection laws.
This enraged the south and it would take years to integrate schools. Many schools chose to shut down or become private, rather than integrate. In some extreme cases, the state capitols rise the confederate battle flag over their buildings, or put up statues of Confederate heroes to send a message to African Americans looking to settle down. In Alabama in 1955, a young woman named Rosa Parks walked into a bus, paid her fee and sat down near the front. When she was asked to move to the back of the bus to allow a white man to sit on front, she refused. Parks was arrested, which would kick off the Montgomery Bus Boycott, led by a young reverend named Martin Luther King, Jr.
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