Category Archives: LAPD

Stubborn Handcuffs Keep Prisoners Out of Jail

Posted on May 30, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Look! It’s Julian Eltinge! May 30, 1910: “Babe” McCain, the bouncer at Turner Hall, brings two prisoners to the police station, but they can’t be booked until McCain removes the handcuffs – which proves to be a problem. And … Continue reading →

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She’s Not Afraid of a Mere Man

Posted on May 27, 2010 by lmharnisch

May 27, 1910: Elizabeth La Rue, a costumer at the Majestic Theater Building, is in the news for grabbing a man who rented one of her costumes and was trying to sell it at a secondhand shop. La Rue took … Continue reading →

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Found on EBay – Thicker’n Thieves

Posted on May 26, 2010 by lmharnisch

Former Police Sgt. Charles Stoker’s “Thicker’n Thieves” has attained a measure of respect that it never had when it was published in 1951. Even five or six years ago, it was possible to pick up a copy for almost nothing … Continue reading →

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Prelude to the Bombing of The Times

Posted on May 26, 2010 by lmharnisch

The Los Angeles County Hall of Records, which survived a 1910 bombing attempt, as it appeared during the realignment of Spring Street in 1929.    In the months leading up to the bombing of the Los Angeles Times by union … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Downtown, LAPD, Los Angeles Times Bombing | 1 Comment

U.S. Launches Spy Satellite

Posted on May 25, 2010 by lmharnisch

    May 25, 1960: The U.S. successfully launches a Midas satellite after a previous attempt failed. The Times editorialized that the satellites would make spy planes such as the U-2 obsolete. Which is why the Midas satellites became space … Continue reading →

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Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, May 23, 1960

Posted on May 23, 2010 by lmharnisch

  May 23, 1960: Paul Coates gets a second column out of the arrest of two people in a 25-cent gambling pool on roller derby at the Olympic Auditorium.

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Freeway Trench Cave-In Kills Boy, 6

Posted on May 23, 2010 by lmharnisch

  May 23, 1960: Kelly "Randy" Holmes of 2829 Allesandro St. is killed when he is buried under four feet of dirt while playing in a trench for the Golden State Freeway near what is now the interchange with the … Continue reading →

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LAPD Reports Fewer Arrests, More Crimes

Posted on May 21, 2010 by lmharnisch

  May 21, 1910: The Times reports some alarming statistics for the Police Department. Arrests have fallen off sharply and criminal complaints have increased. Various officials offer different explanations: officers don’t bother with trivial offenses,  they are frustrated with permissive … Continue reading →

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Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, May 20, 1960

Posted on May 20, 2010 by lmharnisch

  May 20, 1960: Paul Coates writes about two people who were charged with felony bookmaking for running a 25-cent pool on roller derby at the Olympic Auditorium.

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20 Held in Chinatown Gambling Raids

Posted on May 20, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Notice all the car dealers around 10th (Olympic) and Olive streets.    Olympic and Olive via Google maps’ street view. May 20, 1910: Sgt. Charles E. “Charlie” Sebastian, the future police chief and mayor of Los Angeles, leads another raid … Continue reading →

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But He Only Had Two Beers

Posted on May 18, 2010 by lmharnisch

  The Automatic Telephone ensures privacy! June 28, 1904: The rotary phone is putting Los Angeles switchboard operators out of work! May 18, 1910: John Lyons had two beers late one night and decided to go home – only he … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, LAPD | 1 Comment

LAPD’s Cars Are Useless Wrecks

Posted on May 9, 2010 by lmharnisch

  May 9, 1910: “The first automobile purchased by the Police Department was an electric patrol wagon. This proved to be a failure, was used but little, and is now stored in the basement of the jail. Then a gearless … Continue reading →

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Police Raid Chinatown Gambling Dens

Posted on May 4, 2010 by lmharnisch

May 4, 1910: Police conduct gambling raids in Chinatown in the 300 block of Marchessault Street, at 424 N. Los Angeles St.,  335 1/2 Apablasa and on North Alameda. On the jump, in the final days of the U.S. census, … Continue reading →

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CHESSMAN DIES

Posted on May 2, 2010 by lmharnisch

  May 2, 1960: Don Dwiggins of the Mirror News writes: “At exactly 10:03:25, an unidentified guard tripped a lever that sent cyanide pellets dropping into an acid bucket beneath Chessman's seat. “Chessman seemed to tense noticeably, held his breath, … Continue reading →

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Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, April 25, 1960

Posted on April 25, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Heartsick Mother's Problem One Which Has No Solution       Steve's mother knows she did wrong.  But she wonders, under the circumstances, what would have been right.       "I don't know," she told me from behind her handkerchief, … Continue reading →

Posted in Caryl Chessman, Columnists, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Music, Obituaries, Paul Coates | 3 Comments

Mark Twain Near Death

Posted on April 20, 2010 by lmharnisch

  April 20, 1910: Samuel Clemens "has been perfectly conscious and in possession of all his faculties throughout his illness and, weak though he is, frequent flashes of the characteristic wit that made him a unique figure when in health, … Continue reading →

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Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, April 19, 1960

Posted on April 19, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Let's Look at What Happened in London         With the odd feeling of an outsider looking in, I read the news accounts of what happened in London yesterday.        There was a parade, seven miles long.  … Continue reading →

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Sunday Drunks

Posted on April 18, 2010 by lmharnisch

  The Reduso corset reduces measurements of hips and abdomen from one to five inches. April 18, 1910: Police round up 23 drunks on Sunday and the ones who are too intoxicated to give their names have a number stamped … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Fashion, Food and Drink, LAPD | 1 Comment

Daryl Gates in His Own Words

Posted on April 17, 2010 by lmharnisch

Photograph by R.L. Oliver / Los Angeles Times March 29, 1978: Sima Gates checks the new badge of her husband, Daryl F. Gates, after he was sworn in as the city's 49th chief of police during ceremonies at the Police … Continue reading →

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Voices: Daryl Gates, 1926 – 2010

Posted on April 16, 2010 by lmharnisch

 March 29, 1978: Daryl F. Gates becomes police chief. ( George Holliday / Courtesy of KTLA via Associated Press ) Four Los Angeles Police Department officers charged in the videotaped beating of Rodney G. King on March 3, 1991, were … Continue reading →

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