Finding aid for the Collection of promotional material for Southern California police departments 7119

Bell, Milton K. (Photographer). Collection of Photographs of the Arcadia, California Police at Work, ca. 1960. Twenty-two 8" x 10" black and white photographs. Two credited on the back to Milton K. Bell, a commercial photographer based in Monrovia, California, and one stamped "Nov. 1960." The photographs--some of which are probably staged--show members of the Arcadia Police Department investigating crime scenes and motor vehicle accidents, assisting wounded people, conducting a traffic stop, completing a pat-down, and riding and posing with their motorcycles. Arcadia is about thirteen miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles. In 1960, the recently appointed police chief was Robert S. Seares, described on the City of Arcadia website as "a very progressive law enforcement executive" whose "insistence on professional skill development and service to the community began to define Arcadia's long-term professional image." These photographs were likely commissioned as part of a public relations campaign to showcase the department's professionalism.

Pool, Bill W. (Editor). Compton Police Annual. Compton, CA: Compton Police Officers Association, 1964. The fourth annual edition of this periodical, which was used to raise funds for the Officers Relief Fund and to inform the public of "some of our problems and functions." Within a year, there would be riots--founded in a long history of friction between African-American residents and the police--in neighboring Watts, and by 1970, Compton would have the highest crime rate in California. This publication starts with a positive story showcasing a newly completed police building, and includes articles about successful police operations and public safety tips. However, hints of the police-community tension to come are also present. An article titled "'Defenders of the Peace' in Community and Human Relations" asks citizens to support the efforts of the police, complaining that "unjust charges are sometimes made against the police. Charges made or rumored by persons who do not have all the facts. When this happens, police morale is jeopardized and the development of an esprit de corps is made difficult." Another, titled "Take the Handcuffs Off Our Police," argues that by overzealous interpretation of constitutional rights "we are increasingly throttling our law enforcement officers with judge-made rulings that stagger common sense." And an editorial proclaims that "now, more than ever before in our history, one is either for law enforcement or he's against it. He's either for mob rule--or he's for the law. He's either for America--or he's against America. Let's begin to make our laws say what they mean and mean what they say--and let everybody know it."