ABSTRACT
During the first half of this century, the first phase of our story, changes in policing were closely tied to changes in municipal government generally. Civil service rules notwithstanding, access to and advancement in public employment were embedded in the political spoils system. Thus, the electoral victory that brought a new administration into city hall frequently led to a redistribution of power and benefits in the police departments. Since the electoral claims of the new administration included plans for changes that would improve government and public service, they provided the justification for the "shakeup" in the police department. And even though such changes were often enough simply rewards for political loyalty, electoral turnovers were as often preceded by scandals, and the changes in the police departments deserve consideration as reforms of sorts. While it is true that such changes left the prevailing structure of policing unchanged, that they occurred periodically played a part in preventing the police from becoming an independent force in the dynamics of local politics, in which the police was far more often a pawn than a player.
