HomeMy WebLinkAboutJan-Mar15SLOWhatFor many people today, public safety is synonymous with police services. As
we’ve seen over the past three months, for San Luis Obispo, safety meant
fire protection and suppression. However, there was some acknowledgement
that some people simply refused to follow the rules.
Walter Murray, editor of the Tribune, lawyer, District Attorney and judge reflected on the rampant
crime in the area in 1853 when he first arrived:
“…scarcely a month passed without the disappearance of some traveler, or the finding
of dead bodies or skeletons on the roads leading out north or south from here. Many
a cattle-dealer from the upper country has come south to invest, and never returned.”
Dead men tell no tales!
In the heyday of violence, a Vigilance Committee was formed (1858) to dispense justice. The
roster of members is a veritable “Who’s Who” of the pioneer settlers of the valley. More than
one posse (including one with future Governor Romualdo Pacheco) pursued the villainous. If
captured, a tree limb and a rope ended any issue of guilt. Local records are vague as to the
distribution of justice. There seems no pride in resorting to a criminal act to stop another’s
criminal activity, but personal safety became a personal response.
From a lone Marshal to today’s force, law and order was (and is) important. In a smaller
community (maybe 1000 residents in 1870), combined with the County’s sheriff and constables
let alone what today is called street justice, after the 1850s, there were laws broken and
desperados afoot, but early ordinances give few hints of a community gripped by crime.
Unfortunately, only the title has survived of Ordinance 8 “Disorderly Conduct” passed on
February 23, 1858. Thus far, it’s the earliest documentation that, indeed, behavior was a civic
issue. However, by the fall, a new series of Ordinances was passed –all on September 24,
1858 including one for Disorderly Conduct but also ones addressing Nuisances, Firearms, and
dog licenses (which was a duty of those enforcing laws to issue). “Those enforcing the laws”
was a lone marshal whose fees are set forth in an ordinance the next month. Unfortunately,
there are no copies of these ordinances either. Nonetheless, it is a reasonable assumption that
the same ordinance language was used with any date change. Governance appears rather
casual except in cases of raising revenue.
Finally, Ordinance 9 from 1859 has been preserved in the City vaults and defines instances
of disorderly conduct. Basically, the language is what would be expected as everyone was
warned not to disturb the “peace and quiet” of their neighbors with “tumultuous and offensive
conduct.” If found to have done so, fines ranged from $5 to $100. There are several court
records indicating that an alternative to fines (or jail) was for the culprit to leave town. Few
refused the offer to go elsewhere. The choice to relocate would indicate the offenders were not
established residents of the town. Then, as now but by different names, part of the community
seemed composed of drifters…only today, there is no court choice to simply “move on.”
Contact: jacarotenuti@gmail.com
History of San Luis Obispo By: Joseph A. Carotenuti
City Historian/Archivist, Volunteer