Record Group 120
SHERIFF [1853-1969]
See also: ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY The first Sheriff to serve in King County was Carson Dobbins Boren (1853-1854). The elective office of Sheriff was established officially at the Territorial Legislative Assembly in 1854. The essential responsibilities of the Sheriff's office were to provide for enforcement of laws, to assist with the functions of other offices and the courts, to keep the peace, and to protect the property and rights of citizens. During the Territorial period, the Sheriff also was responsible for the collection of taxes. Originally, the Sheriff did not receive a regular salary; compensation instead was comprised of fees received from the county or individuals for the various types of services performed by the Sheriff. With the adoption of the Washington State Constitution in 1889, however, this fee system was abolished. The Sheriff of each county was to be paid according to an established salary based on the population of the county. The term of office for the Sheriff originally was set at two years. In 1922 the term of office was changed to four years. In the early years of the department, staffing policy was fairly loose. The Sheriff had the power to appoint as many deputies as he felt were necessary, but the appointment of those deputies had to be approved by the County Commissioners. By the 1930s the organization and structure of the Sheriff's Department had become increasingly complex and a movement toward the modernization of the police force was taking place. By the mid-1940s the Department was arranged into several distinct divisions, each with a wide range of responsibilities. Among these divisions were administration, criminal, civil, jail, special services, training school, and the auxiliary patrol. The Sheriff's Department was renamed the Department of Public Safety with the adoption of the home rule charter in 1969. Effective with this reorganization, the office of Sheriff became an appointed, rather than an elective office. SERIES DESCRIPTION
(Click on series title to see container list) 120-420 Public information releases, 1966-1967
Contains press releases and articles generated in the Sheriff's office in the mid-1960s. The articles, most of which are numbered and under the byline of Sheriff Jack D. Porter, are the texts for a regular column entitled, "The Human Side of the Law," which ran in local newspapers. Material includes information about women in prison, youth crime and offenders, and general social, environmental and political commentary. Individual items are undated but appear to have been written between 1966 and 1967.Volume: 0.25 cu ft
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