Movies depicting the West in the late 1800s often show a lawless land where shootouts cattle rustling and murders happened every day Movies and television shows called it the Wild West But the truth about the West is a bit different Arrest records from that time show that some of the most common crimes were assault drunkenness gambling burglary and carrying concealed weapons Murder was much lower on the list of crimes The Lawmen Even though lawmen did not have to catch murderers every day they still had plenty of work There were usually three 6 Justice in the Old West Lawmen captured many criminals but judges and juries did not always deal out justice fairly Some judges and juries could be bribed to come to a certain verdict And punishment was often minimal for crimes such as assault A man might only pay a fine or serve a few days in jail Self-defense was a common excuse for a shooting Many were found not guilty because they claimed they had killed a man in self-defense
different kinds of lawmen in the West regional US marshals county sheriffs and city marshals All had assistants who were usually called deputies City marshals were also called constables or police chiefs Regional US marshals enforced national laws These included laws about army desertion and theft of government property A county sheriff was appointed or elected by county officials His jurisdiction was the entire county He enforced county laws Towns employed city marshals City marshals were appointed or elected by a city council City marshals enforced state and local laws in one town or city Unlike a sheriff a city marshal’s jurisdiction ended at the city limits A city marshal might ask for 7 PERSPECTIVES No Catch No Pay A US marshal’s life was not easy He was often not paid if he did not catch an outlaw or if he killed the outlaw It did not matter how far the lawman had traveled or how long he had searched If he wanted to be paid he needed to be successful
Position Laws Enforced Jurisdiction US Marshal federal laws County Sheriff county laws City Marshal Constable Police Chief state and local laws region county city Lawmen of the West Examine the chart Which position enforces laws in the smallest area Which do you think had the most power the sheriff’s help when he felt he could not handle a problem by himself Scandal and Skill Old Western movies got something else wrong about the West Many movies showed lawmen as honest citizens There were some lawmen like that But others had shaky reputations such as those who were reformed outlaws or gunfighters And some were more reformed than others If a man was known for being good with a revolver town officials often thought that was qualification enough to be a lawman Some criminals 8
Sometimes being good with a gun was enough for someone to become a lawman 9
