For nearly 100 years, there had been few changes to American law enforcement. However, then came the little known San Francisco riot of August 1945, which informed the violent events of the next half century. Still, most policing methods remained unchanged until the 1953 kidnapping of Bobby Greenlease in Kansas City, Missouri, a violent event that shook the country. The 1960s were dominated by the civil rights struggles and major riots. Watts, Detroit, and Newark demonstrated how local police departments were unable to handle the disorders that engulfed those cities. The anti-war protest at the 1968 Chicago Democratic Convention is important to this narrative, since the author, Thomas Reppetto, was in charge of convention security, and a major revelation comes when it is revealed that the police department was split on how to deal with the protesters. The 1970s and 1980s were the lowest points in modern American law enforcement until the emergence of"zero intolerance" by New York Police Commissioner William Bratton and Mayor Rudy Giuliani. 9/11 changed the landscape forever, with the new focus on counter-terrorism and new challenges to law enforcement.
About the Author Thomas Reppetto began as a police officer, rising to Commander of Detectives in the Chicago Police Department. In 1970 he received a PhD in public administration from the Harvard School of Government. He taught at the John Jay College of the City University of New York, and became dean of graduate studies, then vice president. He is retired and lives in the New York City area.