History Watch - Slot Trouble

 History Watch

"Slot Trouble"

One would think that in 1931, the town of San Rafael would have been a pretty quiet place.  Believe it or not, that was not the case as there were many types of crimes that Chief O'Brien and his nine officer department had to deal with. Prohibition was in full swing and would not end for another two years.  It was a common site to see trucks driven by "Rum Runners" late at night coming into town from west Marin.  Alcohol was secretly delivered by boat to the shores of the Marin coast and then transferred onto trucks and driven into town and other points.  China Camp was an active fishing village and the police department was busy raiding opium dens in town and investigating other crimes, such as homicides related to these dens.  And last but not least, there was the gambling problem.  Secret gambling rooms were often set up in the back of businesses in town and those in the know were allowed inside to try to make their fortunes.  

Chief O'Brien and his officers were busy trying to keep the town safe with all of these issues, conducting raids and making arrests for various offenses.  But one such gambling raid caused a whole bunch of trouble for the 80-year-old chief and his officers.  On Saturday June 6, 1931, Chief O'Brien received a tip that a gambling room was running in the back of a business in the downtown.  O'Brien and several of his officers raided the business and found a flourishing gambling room hidden in the rear of the building that, among other things, had 43 slot machines, all in working condition.  Arrests were made and the slots were transported to city hall (located at Fifth and A Street) and stored in the locked basement that was under the chief's office. The machines had been loaded onto a city truck and the truck and machines were locked in the storage room.

All was well as the raid was a success and a good number of slot machines were seized as evidence.  But as we know in law enforcement, evil lurks, and it can strike at any time.  On Monday, June 8, 1931, a city worker went to the storage area to get an item and he discovered that the lock to the door was broken.  He entered the garage and discovered that the city truck and the 43 slot machines were gone.  Chief O'Brien was notified and he immediately started an investigation.  A teletype was sent out on the stolen truck and machines and officers started making inquires around town in an attempt to locate the truck and the slot machines.

As the investigation continued, word got to San Rafael Mayor William S. Nock and when he heard that the truck and slot machines had been stolen from right under the police chief's office, he was beside himself and he was determined to do something about it.  Now it seems that the mayor was never a fan of the police department and continually criticized the organization.  In fact, two years later, when Chief O'Brien died in office, the mayor appointed himself chief of police and ran the department for several months before a new chief was finally appointed.  

Mayor Nock was convinced that the theft was an inside job and that officers were involved. On Tuesday, June 9, 1931, Mayor Nock called a secret city council meeting to discuss the incident.  One concern Nock had was that the 43 slot machines were worth $150 each and if a court made the City of San Rafael pay for the machines, it would cost the city $6,400 ($104,000 in 2021 dollars) and he was not about to be stuck with that bill.  During the secret session, the city council heard testimony from Chief O'Brien,  Sgt Paul Treanton, and Officers C. I. Doose, Leslie Tracy, William Kane, and Vernon Thomas. Chief O'Brien offered up one new piece of information, telling the council that the city truck had been located three miles north of San Rafael on a deserted road with no slot machines on board. He added that they had found fingerprints on the truck's steering wheel and the investigation would be continuing.

But Mayor Nock had other plans.  At the conclusion of the hearing, he made a motion to the council to fire all nine officers of the police department, even though no evidence of officer involvement had been uncovered.  The motion got a second and the vote was unanimous to terminate all members of the police force, except Chief O'Brien, who was an elected official and to Nock's chagrin, could not be discharged from his duties. 

The council directed that the officers last day would be on July 15, 1931 and they directed Chief O'Brien to have new applications in hand by July 1, 1931.  Chief O'Brien vigorously objected to the council's decision, stating, "I have faith in every man in my department."  The chief declared, "I have been complimented by officials from large cities on the efficiency of my department and am amazed at the action of the council."  Councilman Joseph Williams (who a year later gave up his council seat to become a San Rafael police officer) responded, "We believe some members of the department are guilty of negligence."  The council, however left the door open by stating that any of the fired officers could reapply for their jobs, but they had to do so by July 6, 1931.  The council stated that consideration would be given to those officers, but it would not be guaranteed that they would get their jobs back.

That said, Mayor Nock was happy with the outcome, however he might not have anticipated what would happen next.  Within days, a bloodless war began between Chief O'Brien and the city council.  There were threats of suits, counter-suits, payroll embargos and reprisals from both sides.  The press got wind of the controversy and they played it up big in the papers.  The Mill Valley Record had headlines that read, "Big San Rafael Police Shake-up."  Headlines in the San Francisco Examiner screamed, "Police Force of San Rafael Will be Discharged."

After much debate, it was decided that the city council would meet with Chief O'Brien to try to come to some type of agreement. On July 11, 1931, the meeting was held at city hall.  Present was the city council with City Attorney Jordan Martinelli, Mayor Nock with his attorney, and Chief O'Brien with his attorney. After much discussion, it was agreed that all members of the police department would be reinstated and all officers would be absolved of the disappearance of the slot machines.  It seemed that all involved parties had a sigh of relief that the whole matter was finally over and life could get back to normal.  And as for those troublesome slot machines, they apparently became a mystery consumed by time as they were never recovered.

Attached are two photos.  The first is of Chief Peter O'Brien, the longest tenured San Rafael Police Chief, having served as an officer from 1894 to 1919 and who then served as police chief from 1919 to 1933. The second photo is of San Rafael City Hall that was located at the southwest corner of Fifth and A Street.  The police department was located in the basement on the left side of the building on Julia Street. 

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