Dark and Tangled Threads of Crime: San Francisco's Famous Police Detective Isaiah W. Lees - Softcover

Secrest, William B

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1884995411 ISBN 13: 9781884995415

Publisher: Word Dancer Press, 2004

Synopsis

He came to California with the great Gold Rush, but instead of riches, Isaiah W. Lees discovered his great talent for solving crimes and catching criminals. He captured stage robbers in Missouri, tracked con men to New York and caught the notorious eastern bank robber, Jimmy Hope in the middle of a San Francisco heist.
San Francisco in the 1850's, was the gateway to the gold fields, a city filled with adventurers, outlaws, con men and desperadoes of every description. In 1853 Isaiah Lees was appointed the first Chief of Detectives on the new Police Force and during nearly fifty years he acquired an amazing record. An innovator of police methods, Lees easily eclipsed such legendary lawman as Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp. When he retired as chief in 1900, the San Francisco Chronicle stated that "in point of service, no one has ever equaled the record of Lees." He was the right man, in the right place, at the right time, and this is his exciting, true story, told here for the first time.

About this title

About the Author

Born in Fresno, California, in March of 1930, William B. Secrest grew up in the great San Joaquin Valley. After high school he joined the Marine Corps where he served in a guard detachment and in a rifle company in the early years of the Korean War. Returning to college, he obtained a BA in education, but for many years he served as an art director for a Fresno advertising firm. Secrest has been interested in history since his youth and early began comparing Western films to what really happened in the West. A hobby at first, this avocation quickly developed into correspondence with noted writers and more serious research. Not satisfied in a collaboration with friend and Western writer Ray Thorp, Secrest began researching and writing his own articles in the early 1960s. Although at first he wrote on many general Western subjects, some years ago Secrest realized how his home state has consistently been neglected in the Western genre and concentrated almost exclusively on early California subjects. He has produced hundreds of articles for such publications as Westways, Montana, True West, and the American West, while publishing seven monographs on early California themes. His book I Buried Hickok (Early West Publishing Co.) appeared in 1980, followed by Lawmen & Desperadoes (The Arthur H. Clark Co.) in 1994 and Dangerous Trails (Barbed Wire Press) in 1995. A biography of noted San Francisco police detective Isaiah Lees has been accepted for publication. A current project is a biography of Harry Love, the leader of the rangers who tracked down Joaquin Murrieta.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Isaiah Wrigley Lees was a remarkable man. As a San Francisco police detective for nearly fifty years, few could equal his investigative skills or length of service in fighting crime in the early West. "Above all men," stated a superior court judge at Lees' death, "who have ever been connected with the administration of justice in California, Isaiah W. Lees has done more to vindicate the law and discourage crime." It was a fitting tribute to one of the most colorful, and little-known, of California's pioneer lawmen. When Isaiah Lees joined the San Francisco Police Department in late 1853, a new era had dawned. The old nightwatchman and constable system of law enforcement was evolving into organized departments better equipped to combat the riots and crime of a growing nation. New ideas and methods were being explored and introduced. There was debate over police uniforms, as well as the new concept of detective officers specializing in criminal investigation and solving crimes.

Lees' police career was all the more significant in light of the setting for his adventures. His story encompasses the beginnings of the rambunctious, gold rush village of San Francisco as it evolved into the financial metropolis of the Pacific Coast. Lees watched as his friends Peter Donahue, Michael de Young, John Nightingale and others acquired fortunes while creating a mighty city. But in the background, in sinister alleys and dead of night, detective Lees worked ceaselessly to maintain order and make his city safe from the spoilers and desperadoes. Although one of the first west coast police detectives, Lees' methods and the law he sought to uphold were curiously similar to those of today. Then, as now, there were enough legal loopholes to enable a good criminal lawyer to win release of clients on a frightfully frequent basis. Although convictions on circumstantial evidence were much easier to obtain then, the law was still quite liberal in Lees' time. Even at that early period a police officer worked under rules and regulations. And, strict enforcement of the law was usually monitored quite closely by the press.

It is remarkable that Lees appeared on the San Francisco scene when he did and he became the embodiment of the old adage—the right man in the right place at the right time. After trying his hand at various occupations, he found exactly what he was suited for. From the beginning he was the quintessential detective, the tireless investigator who carefully assembled his clues until they made sense. No miracle worker or Sherlock Holmes, Lees always worked very hard to resolve a crime. But he did more. In retrospect, it's clear that he practiced a rudimentary form of criminal psychology, even though he wouldn't have known the meaning of the term.

Edition details

• Publisher: Word Dancer Press
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 1884995411
• ISBN 13: 9781884995415
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 313