THE
CONCISE HISTORY OF LAW ENFORCEMENT
PART 2
THE 1700'S IN USA
In 1712 the first full-time paid
law enforcement officer system was developed in the United States.
Again because of the Manufacturing and accelerated growth of
civilization due to science and manufacturing Boston again set the
trend. Boston was the first city in the United States to hire
full-time, paid law enforcement officers.
In fact on September 24th,
of 1789, the Congress of the United States created the first Federal law
enforcement officers known as the United States Marshals. It is quite
sad but important to note that the first officer in United States
history, U.S. Marshal Robert Forsyth, was killed in the line of duty on
January 11th, 1789.
MODERN LAW ENFORCEMENT
BEGINS IN GREAT BRITAIN
As you can see most civilized and scientifically advancing nations
struggled with ever changing law enforcement techniques. Inevitably a
miscellaneous yet all encompassing method of Specialized Municipal
Police developed which encompassed, the night watch, market police,
warehouse and dock police and the river police. Unfortunately it was
inevitable that a lack in coordination between the various Municipal
police would be the system’s downfall. Between 1600 and 1700, the
English Parliament began the first survey of existing police systems by
a committee of investigators.
Henry Fielding best known as the
author of Tom Jones, Magistrate for Middlesex and the Westminster areas
made the first real police survey and promoted the concept that the
police should be paid and trained with permanent special forces
replacing the voluntary or civilian duty systems. It was Fielding who
advanced special agents for investigation and the adjudication of crimes
(deviated from the courts of ancient Judaism: Remember the Sheriff
insignia and even Law Enforcement’s Insignia in the US is the Star of
David; see modern Serifs badges as one reference) in courts.
The "foot patrol" or street foot
patrol, the mounted patrol for Magistrate Fielding originated highways.
In fact by 1749, he established the Bow Street Runners as special
investigations unit. They were detectives who sped to a crime scene to
reconstruct or hold evidence securely.
However it was Anthony Cooper who
established the Habeas Corpus act. As a result of this act, a prisoner
thereafter had the right to be advised as to why he was being held, and
he could be held only within his own county. This is the origin of the
American writ of habeas corpus.
Bobbies or English police derive
their name from Robert Peel. In 1829, Home Secretary Peel introduced
into Parliament the Metropolitan Police Act. Thus "Peel's Principles"
formed the basis for Law Enforcement throughout the world.
New York City adopted "Peel's
Principles in 1833, which follow:
1.
The police must be stable, efficient, and
organized along military lines.
2.
The police must be under government control.
3.
The absence of crime will best prove the
efficiency of police.
4.
The distribution of crime news is essential.
5.
The deployment of police strength, both by
time and area, is essential.
6.
No quality is more indispensable to a
policeman than a perfect command of temper. A quiet, determined manner
has more effect than violent action.
7.
Good appearance commands respect.
8.
The selection and training of proper persons
are at the root of efficient law enforcement.
9.
Public security demands that every police
officer be given an identifying number.
10.
Police headquarters should be centrally
located and easily accessible to the people.
11.
Policemen should be hired on a probationary
basis before permanent assignment.
12.
Police crime records are necessary to the best
diestributio9n of police strength.
The year 1831 sadly
brought about the death of Stephen Girard in Philadelphia. However in
his last will and testament he stipulated that a large sum of money be
bequeathed to the city of Philadelphia to create a "competent police."
So, by 1833 (the same year of the Peel Act of New York) Philadelphia
came under protection of a unit of 24 police by day and 120 by night. A
captain appointed by the mayor was responsible for both units.
Moreover, advancement was entirely on merit.
1835 THE UNHERALDED YEAR
In 1835 both Texas in the US and
the English Parliament had new accomplishment.
Texas created the oldest statewide
law enforcement agency in America, what today is known as the Texas
Rangers. The British Parliament passed legislation permitting a city of
over 20,000 population to establish its own law enforcement agency. The
city council was authorized to appoint a committee to establish a police
force comparable to the London police.
The New York Legislature in the US
, in 1844, created a united day and night force of 800 men and a Chief
of Police. This organization followed the London plan and served as a
model for urban police organizations throughout the United States. In
1851, Chicago adopted New York's pattern, and in 1850, Boston
consolidated its day and night watch because it found that the
separation of the two units was not feasible.
The Obligatory Act of 1856 was
passed in England by Parliament; the Act made it mandatory for each
county to create its own law enforcement body and to finance its
operation.
In the United States police
uniforms were introduced; however, police executives in 1855 weathers
tremendous resistance from the public due to complaints that uniforms
were undemocratic and un-American. However in 1856 New York City police
adopted the full police uniform, Not to be outdone in 1858 both Boston
and Chicago police departments issued uniforms to their officers. And
in 1860, Philadelphia followed the new set of standards.
By 1857 New York experimented with
boards for local police. However, after this experiment, they were
abandoned because the administrative control was too remote from the
local police problems and activities. Police cannot be supervised in
absentia, it was concluded as a result of the experiment.
On April 14, 1865, the very day
President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, he approved formation of
what is now the U.S. Secret Service. Previously in 1842, when
counterfeiting became prevalent, Congress passed the counterfeiting law
of 1842. However, it was not until 1865 that the President signed it
into law, and until July 5th of 1865, after his death, that
the Secret Service was established to investigate and control federal
violations, assume jurisdiction as the first general investigative
agencies ranking its investigators with the finest in the World. The
national headquarters of the Secret Service was located in Washington,
D.C., with 11 cities selected for field operations sites. Initially the
agents’ credentials were handwritten letters of appointment. Badges
were not given to preserve secrecy. The Treasury Department would send
out a formal circular letter to the United States marshals and other
peace officers announcing the formation of the Secret Service and its
functions. Because they did not carry guns nor had credentials,
bankers and others investigated were not willing to cooperate with the
suspicious agents (more later in the Secret Service Section).
During this latter period of the
1800s, there were forces for reform in almost every city in the United
States. But only when people became aroused from their usual apathy
because of shocking crime waves did new procedures, such as the free
election of police chiefs occur. The election of the chief of police to
office usually involved the whole department too deeply in politics, and
today this practice of electing the chief of police is almost extinct in
the USA. Whereas in the past, the most common method of selecting chief
of police was through appointment by the city council, the modern trend
is toward selection by open, competitive written and oral examination.
The members of the city council selected a police chief from one of the
top three cops in competitive examinations. If the municipality had a
city manager or administrator, the city council usually would act on the
recommendation of the city manger or administrator. On November 2,
1870, Thomas J. Smith of Abilene, Kansas, was the first of more than
2350 police chiefs to die in the line of duty. And sadly on November
11, 1871 in Portsmouth, Virginia, Patrolman John Wilson became the first
African American Police officer to be killed in the line of duty.
In the West by 1850 San Francisco,
with the help of a city charter, had a chief of police and police force
of 7 to 12 men. During the Gold Rush because of the Gold Rush migration
to California in great numbers, caused many problems appearing in
vigilantes, bounty hunters, gunslingers, and the vice of the Barbary
Coast. To preserve law and order San Francisco's police force was
boosted to 400 members in 1878.
On September 4, 1781, the city of
Los Angeles came into existence by proclamation. It took almost 70
years for Los Angeles to develop an efficient police department. Only
when California was admitted in the Union in 1850 did Los Angeles
legally incorporate as a city. It is at this point in time that the
history of the Los Angeles Police Department commenced.
The City Marshal could deputize
citizens to maintain law and order. Anyone violating the law would work
out his or her fines on chain gangs at $1 per day. In fact in 1851 a
voluntary police force of 100 members acting under the Common Council
(City council) was formed in Los Angeles. White ribbon badges bearing
the words "City Police" in both English and Spanish were issued to the
volunteers as badge of their police authority. Yet to fight the
organized bandits, volunteer organization such as vigilantes were still
used. The most famous group was the Los Angeles Rangers. In order to
supply equipment, the California State legislature, in 1854 granted the
sum of $4,000 to the Los Angeles Rangers. 1869 changed this voluntary
force to a paid police department with an appointed city marshal. The
new department consisted of two 6-man squads, each under the direction
of a captain. Each squad worked a 12-hour shift under a two-platoon
system. Compensation was based on fees rather than on a regular salary.
1870 brought about the first
appointment by the major with full approval of the Common Council. In
1877, the office of city marshal was abolished and the Common Council
elected the city's first chief of police. Regular city uniforms were
worn and in 1885 the firs telephone was installed in the chief's
office. However not until 1889 did Los Angeles divvied into four
policing districts, each under the supervision of a sergeant. In order
to keep the officers in close contact with headquarters, an alarm system
was installed in 1897. It was at this time the Bertillon system of
identification was adopted.
1789 began the mounted patrol in
England, which was the beginning of State Sponsored Highway Patrols. It
was also the first year that the United States Congress created Federal
Law Enforcement known as the United States marshal. Forty years later,
in 1829, Congress passed the Postal Act, which conferred police powers
on a federal agency. This act required the service of inspectors to
enforce the postal laws. The US Postal Service was the first law
enforcement agency in the United States to begin the policing of Medical
Fraud, Quackery, waste and abuse.
From 1878-1881 the notorious
outlaw, "Billy the Kid," killed six law enforcement officers in New
Mexico. However on October 26, 1881 the legendary lawman Hero Wyatt
Earp, his brothers and "Doc" Holiday, won the Wild West era's most
famous gunfight at the O.K. Corral.
Because of the Wild West the United States Congress passed the Pendleton Act in 1883 establishing
civil service for law enforcement ending the previous 75 years of "to
the winner goes the spoils or graft and political plums.” This tool
forged the police appointment out of the reach of sordid politicians.
Thus the federal government served to set up a model for state, county,
and municipal police departments to follow. Now, police promotions at
the state, county, and city levels, based on a civil service system of
merit via open examinations brought about improvement in municipal
police services.
Yet on December 15, of 1890 six
officers with the U.S Bureau of Indian Affairs were killed attempting to
arrest the Sioux Indian leader, Sitting Bull.
In 1902 Finger printing was first
used in the United States and in 1903 civil service came into effect
(See Chapter 6 the Forensic Science and History of Identification).
Yet it was not until 1910 that
Alice Stebbins Wells, of the Los Angeles Police Department, became the
first female officer with arrest powers. In 1911 the modern concept of
the fingerprint classification became the primary method for
identification.
The Berkley California Police
Department became the first agency in the country to have all patrol
officers using automobiles. However 1916 has the dubious historical
identity of the first year in United States history that more than 100
police officers were killed in the line of duty. Further on November
24, of 1917 a bomb exploded at Milwaukee Police Headquarters killing
nine officers, more than had ever died in any other law enforcement
incident.
Because of a need to organize fully
the police of Los Angels August Vollmer, known as the patriarch of
California law enforcement, was induced to come to Los Angeles. He
guided the department to its first chief of police. Administrative
supervision of the PD was delegated to the police commission appointed
by the major, with city council consent. Due to an inability to recruit
new officer fast enough to the most sprawling city in the United States,
aggressive officer so lucrative pay and attractive administrative
positions became the standard. American citizens between 21 and 35 were
urged to apply. One would apply at age 19 and if the applicant was
successful, he became eligible for regular police officer employment at
the age of 21.
On May 10 of 1924 the most famous
crime fighter in world history begins his carrier. J. Edgar Hoover
served nearly 50 yeas as the director G-man of what would become the
FBI. Sadly the very next day Mary T. Davis becomes the first female
officer to be killed in the line of duty.
Sheriffs had developed with various
limitations dependent upon the state. The Sheriff however was a
consistent policing authority with the US district. Section 24000 of
the Government Code of California for example had stipulated that the
sheriff was an officer of the county. Moreover, the Appellate Court had
ruled that the sheriff was a public officer with powers and duties such
as officer of the court as well as administrative. In Section 817 of
the California Penal Code the sheriff was designated the title of peace
officer. Section 24001 of the California Government Code required that
the candidate for sheriff, be eligible for office at 21 years of age or
older, a citizen of the state, and an elector of the county. The
Sheriffs was granted Legal Authority to sponsor, supervise, or
participate in nay project or crime prevention action. The Sheriffs
jurisdiction covered the suppression of delinquency and even
rehabilitation. He could arrest and take before the nearest judge, any
person who attempt to commit or have committed a crime and was charged
with the responsibility of preventing and suppressing any public brawls,
breaches of peace e, riots, and insurrections which come to his
attention and still for a posse and be custodian of the county jails and
the prisoners confined therein. By Law although the Sheriff was
required to serve all resident of the county they actually provide
police serve primarily to unincorporated areas and counties that
contract for such services.
In 1929 the famous federal agent
(FBI loaned to treasury) Eliot Ness began his law enforcement career and
was picked to lead a group of agents, which we all know today as "The
Untouchables". Although the press was never kind to Ness, because of
his never ending quest for truth, justice and the FBI way, he and his
team cleaned up the notorious Chicago Crime and Racketeering networks
far greater than the stories of Bootlegging. Any and all racketeering
activities (not popular to destroy in a city which a history of big
dollar corruption) such as money laundering, gambling, drugs, murders,
bootlegging etc. were eliminated in toto by Ness. Ness leaving Chicago
unaided with modern television left for Cleveland to run for Mayor only
to be treated so poorly, that he never recovered from the depression and
he himself fell into (depression was an unknown medical condition
relative to today) depression and an early death.
Bonnie and Clyde from 1932-1934
murdered no less then 10-law enforcement officers. This heinous number
was the largest amount of law enforcement deaths attributed to any
criminals to day.
Many new reforms were coming but no
greater death than Dotson "Pop" Sutton, age 80, was the oldest officer
to die in the line of duty. He died on June 25, of 1952.
In 1954, contract law enforcement
was initiated in Los Angeles County. Since then, Los Angeles County has
made over 1,000 city-county contracts that cover services ranging form
street lighting and fire service to law enforcement. Almost every new
city, which receives a charter, contracts with the county for police
services. This trend was followed throughout California and the Nation.
However November 22, 1963 was and
forever will be known as the day of infamy. Dallas Police officer JD
Tippit was shot and killed by Lee Harvey Oswald after the assassination
of President Kennedy. No matter whether there was a conspiracy as many
wish to believe, the forensics tying Oswald to Tippit was never in
dispute and identified a man fleeing like he had never done before.
During the 1970's over 32 cities in
California contracted for law enforcement services with the sheriff.
Even though there were federal and police authorities, the ever-growing
nature of the then 6th largest US economy (now 7th)
continued the need of additional sheriff services. Even Los Angeles
with its world famous LAPD had 14 sheriffs' stations location throughout
Los Angeles County operating 24-hour radio car patrol services and
maintain detective and juvenile unites. The department was divided into
seven major divisions; each headed by a chief who was responsible to
sheriff for the division’s actives. These divisions are administrative,
patrol, detective, technical services, jail, corrections and civil.
Soft Body armor for protection
against handgun assaults were introduced to police in 1974 and it was
not until 1988 that the FBI became the first law enforcement agency in
the nation to us DNA test methods and results as forensic evidence to
solve crimes.
The Modern Highway Patrols, as
noted earlier (coming from the mounted patrol) serve the all-important
task of highway safety. Not only are they empowered to stop crime but
also unlike any other agency they have been empowered to help motorists
in distress. A true story from this CFE's experience. While in the
"employ trenches" on
what I had thought to be a “good cover” investigating international
campaign contributions from the orient, I became the victim of attempted
murder by a rough rookie odd type of federal
officer. He had suddenly tried to run me off the freeway, which
developed, into a weave drive adventure. I flagged down a highway
patrol and pointed back indicating a mad man would be along shortly with
flashing headlights. So be it. The highway patrol officer (State
Police) pulled him over. The Patrol officer then came up to me and
said, “don’t say a word. He can take my badge but I pointed out that I
saw everything”. When he said that, I went ballistic, and began
throwing punches and a round house kick to wit the officer tried to
stand between us and the alleged unusual type of
rookie Federal
GREEN POULTICE-GRAFT Officer (still with his
training T-shirt on although of the descent of my investigation into
foreign graft and corruption) jumped into his car and sped off laying
rubber onto the 405 freeway. The highway patrol man, scratched his
head, said, “how do I write this up?” I said, “You don’t …” with an
explanation. When I returned home I reported this to
the L.A. duty officer Agent with a copy
of part of my investigation sent by US mail. However it was the
California Highway Patrol, which came to my rescue and stood guardian
over Truth, Justice and the Yankee Doodle way of life.
Today, all
sectors of Law Enforcement as well as Forensic Consultants work together
to continually refine the science which guide is human behavior along a
safe a healthy path of evolution. Groups such as the American Academy
for Justice Through Science, The Association of Certified Fraud
Examiners as well as the National Criminal Justice Association continues
to bring cutting edge science to eradicate crime and help guide the
human race on a safe and healthy course of evolution.
For the purposes
of this Text of instruction we will define criminal behavior as “that
human behavior that violates criminal laws”. Huge schools of thought
have been developed within the fields of psychology and psychiatry to
define criminal behavior whether it is related to Analytical or Behavior
Psychology. In fact many federal agencies such as the Secret Service,
FBI, and even local police departments retain full-time psychiatrists
and psychologists for advice and consultation. By researching,
identifying, and learning the patterns of criminal behavior, all of law
enforcement benefits through greater expedience in apprehending
criminals and solving crimes.
Several years ago
(1998) this examiner was privy to a film presentation by the Secret
Service on the Criminal Profiling of Presidential Assassins.
Through the videotape presentation and video question and answer session
with the assassin, (he was close enough on the video of Bush and Clinton
speeches to have killed them; to make a long story short) the Service
believed that Assassins profile were people who were very sane, and
simply loners. Of course this examiner could not let this profile go,
as it was incorrect. I raised my hand in the meeting and stated “many
years ago an investigative reporter was asked to visit an insane asylum
in upper state New York. He toured the entire asylum waiting to visit
the ward for the criminally insane. When he entered the ward he noticed
that there were no guards. This cause him to ask the Psychiatrist “Why
are there guards everywhere else in the Hospital but not in the ward for
the criminally insane?” The psychiatrist answered that “Lunatics never
unite!” Suddenly many Secret Service Personnel
especially from the Secret Service Labs and FBI agreed. Thus, the
Lunatic has been added back to the MO (see chapter on MO) of the
Presidential Assassin type for non-profit. Law Enforcement today is an
ever-changing growing science “which
bends as the wisdom of science bends in the currents of new knowledge
(Neff, SD The Strain of Athleticism, 1981 JACA)”.
For part 3 Click on the link below.
By Dr. Scott Neff Chiropractic Orthopedist MPS-BT MSOM BCFE/BCFM CFE FFABS FACFE FFAAJTS
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