In 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, invaded and conquered
England. The kind of philosophy of law enforcement brought with
him was that of a highly repressive police system. Collective
security was deemed far more important than individual freedom,
so William proceeded to militarize the existing civil
arrangements of the Anglo-Saxons. He divided England into fifty
five separate military areas and placed an officer of his own
selection into each shire to take charge. In this way the state
assumed the responsibility for keeping the peace, and set the
stage for a diminution of community responsibility. In effect,
martial law was created.
King William decided that the shires should no longer try cases
and therefore selected his own judges to travel about the realm.
They were called vice comites and represented a division of
responsibility between law enforcement and the judicial process.
Until that time, each shire had done these things for themselves.
The vice comites was an unpopular public officer, for the people
believed his sole purpose was to collect as many fines as
possible. These traveling judges were the forerunners of the
circuit judge of today.
In 1116, Henry I, son of William the Conqueror, issued the Leges
Henrici, from which Henry received the title, "Law Giver." These
laws divided England into thirty judicial districts, and are
particularly important for the following reason: "......there
will be certain offenses against the kings's peace, arson,
robbery, murder, false coinage, and crimes of violence." This
brought into acceptance the idea of disturbance of the peace, the
concept that men were to be punished by the state, rather than by
the individual or group that was injured.
Serious crimes, said the king, "we deem to be felonious." The
word 'felon' at that time referred to a person of the lowest
degree. Other offenses were termed "misdemeanors," meaning bad
behavior, and consisted of lessor violations.
King John assumed the English throne in 1199. By that time the
people were thoroughly disgusted by the brutality used against
them in the name of justice. On June 15, 1215, King John was
forced to sign the Magna Carta, (great charter) which guaranteed
basic civil and political liberties to both the people and
nobles.
Article 13 states: "............and the City of London shall have
all its ancient liberties and free customs. Moreover, we will
grant that all other cities and villages shall have all their
liberties and free customs." In this manner, local control was
restored to the communities of England, and thus was established
a clear separation between the nation and local government.
Article 39 states: "....."No freeman may be taken or imprisoned
or disseized or outlawed or banished or in any way
destroyed......except by the lawful judgement of his peers, or by
the law of the land. To none will we sell or deny or delay right
to justice. We will not make men Justiciaries, constables,
sheriffs, or bailiffs, unless they understand the law of the
land, and are well disposed to observe it."
So, in this way trial by jury and due process were installed as
the right of a free people.
The phrase "police state" has an ominous ring to those who are
not striving to impose or maintain one. From the days of fascist
Sparta to the Nazi Gestapo or the Soviet KGB, the lessons of
history teach that dictators and oligarches must centralize
police powers in order to impose their will and maintain control.
Often, the would-be dictators themselves incite the violence that
then serves as an excuse for centralizing police power and
disarming the citizens in order to "solve" the problem.
Adolph Hitler did just that to facilitate his rise to power. On
June 16, 1936, for the first time in German history, a unified
police was established for the whole of the
Reich.......previously the police had been organized separately
by each of the states........ and Heinrich Himmler was put in
charge as Chief of the German Police. This was tantamount to
putting the police in the hands of the S.S., (Schutzstaffel or
Blackshirts), which since its suppression of the Roehm "revolt"
in 1934 had been rapidly increasing in power......The Third
Reich, as is evidenced in the development of all totalitarian
dictatorships, had become a police state."
Gun control also played a crucial role in solidifying Nazi rule,
confirming that dictatorship thrives best where the people are
disarmed, since there is then little chance of mounting an
effective challenge to those in power. Section II, paragraph 3,
part 5 of Hitler's March 18, 1938 "Weapons Law," asserted that a
license to manufacture guns "must not be issued if the
applicant...or if one of the persons proposed for the commercial
or technical management of the business.....is a Jew." In
contrast, Section IV, paragraph 12 provided that a a "firearms
acquisition permit is not needed by" among others, "Officials of
the central government" and "the states." Moreover, Paragraph 19
exempted those "to whom a firearm is supplied for official
purposes," including persons "in the service of the central
government and the states," "the S.A. [Storm-troopers]", and "the
SS [Blackshirts]."
Hitler realized that in order to establish a dictatorship he had
to control the police powers and he had to confiscate the guns.
But he did not tell the German people it was his intent to
enslave them. By the time they realized what had happened, it was
to late.
Can this be happening now, here in America? The national media
tells America every day that more federal involvement in law
enforcement and more restrictions on the private ownership of
firearms are needed in order to counter a growing crime wave that
appears to be out of control. But, what the media does not tell
us, is that this crime wave has been exacerbated by the Supreme
Court decisions and other government policies that have placed
the rights of the criminal ahead of the rights of the victims.
We can sit quietly and allow it to happen, or we can discuss it
among ourselves and allow it to happen. Shall we quietly acquiess
and appear to be docile fools, or should we take to the streets
in loud protest.
Can we afford to remain silent as a nation? We've been divided
into many political splinter groups which serves those who would
be our masters. Our unity as one people, "Americans," has been
destroyed. Through this division, we are being conquered. If we
as a people are willing to die for the freedom of others, can we
be willing to do less for ourselves?
The most important function of the law enforcement services in
America today should be the fulfillment of its function as the
protector of the people. As public servants known in the past as
"OFFICERS OF THE PEACE" police today have become known as "LAW
ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS"
Today law enforcement is becoming recognized by the majority of
the people in this nation as the exercise of unlawful dominion
over others. Law enforcement appears as the imposition of the
will of the state by force and fear. The law enforcement officer
today enforces an artificial morality for the benefit of the
state. Every time a "law enforcement officer" issues a citation,
arrests, or assists in prosecution of a victimless crime, they
are enforcing not law, but "PUBLIC POLICY" legislation.
But law is no panacea. Law does not necessarily have to be good
or fair. One can easily lose one's liberties and freedom through
law. Law is enforced through police power and obeyed through
fear. Hitler came to power through "LAW." He professed to act in
the "National Interest." Anyone who was against Hitler, was said
to be against the national interest and the people. The words
haven't changed. The characters are different. The agenda is the
same. Hitler came to power legally and instituted dictatorship
legally. It's impossible for a people to say "no" when you are
disarmed and living in a police state. Randy Weaver said 'NO."
The people at Waco said "NO." In Philadelphia the MOVE people
said "NO." The evidence speaks for itself..........Are you
willing to say "NO" while you still have the chance?
Supreme Court Justice Brandeis spoke, in the case of Olmstead v.
United States when he said:
"Decency, security and liberty alike demand that government
officials shall be subjected to the same rules of conduct that
are commands to the citizen. In a government of laws, existence
of the government will be imperiled if it fails to observe the
laws scrupulously. Our government is the potent omnipresent
teacher. For good or ill, it teaches the whole people by it's
example. Crime is contagious. If the government becomes a law
breaker, it breeds contempt for the law; it invites every man to
become a law unto himself; it invites anarchy. To declare that in
the administration of criminal laws the end justifies the
means-----to declare that the government may commit crimes in
order to secure the conviction of a private criminal----would
bring terrible retribution. Against that pernicious doctrine this
Court should resolutely set its face. ...
And so should every law enforcement officer, student,
practitioner, supervisor, and administrator........."
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August 1997
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