William Harvey Thompson
Encyclopedia
William Harvey Thompson was a prohibition
enforcement agent in the Seattle, Washington
, unit of the Prohibition Bureau. Widely known as Kinky, because of his tight curly hair, Thompson's career illustrated one of the problems - unprofessional enforcement - that led to increasing opposition to National Prohibition in the United States
(1920–1933).
Thompson’s first mention in the press occurred after he shot a moonshine
still-tender through the stomach during a raid.
Later Thompson reported that bootlegger
s attacked him late one night as he was driving on a deserted country road. He claimed that, while a car was overtaking him , he was shot in the arm. However, police investigators found substantial evidence that Thompson had fabricated the whole story.
Thompson used a blackjack
on a man who had no reputation for violence. A jury hearing the resulting case denounced Thompson for his brutal beating of the defendant. The judge who presided at the trial later called Thompson’s supervisor into his chamber and warned him about Thompson’s behavior. Thompson later blackjacked a twelve year old boy, the boy’s mother, and his one-legged father. He subsequently pistol-whipped a manacled prisoner in full view of a crowd of onlookers who were outraged at his behavior.
Thompson‘s "favorite tactic was to walk into a joint, grab a pitcher of beer, and pour the contents on the bar, then offer to reimburse the nearest drinker. If the man denied that the beer was his, [Thompson] would strike him over the head with a shot-filled blackjack, and then wring a confession by painfully twisting the victim’s arm."
Bureau of Prohibition
officials defended their agents’ violence, arguing that they bravely had to consume alcohol as part of their undercover work and that it threatened their health and caused crazed behavior. However, a local newspaper asked why patrons who consumed the same beverages didn’t become similarly crazed with an uncontrollable desire to injure others and destroy property.
Police summoned to a drunken fight between a couple in a parked car asked the driver to move on. At that point the driver became belligerent and reached for something in his coat but the driver fired first, fatally wounding Thompson.
Thompson was eulogized as a martyr for the dry cause and his death was blamed on societal disrespect for law and order. Federal Prohibition officials later praised Thompson’s “zeal” but never acknowledged that he had ever used excessive force.
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
enforcement agent in the Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, unit of the Prohibition Bureau. Widely known as Kinky, because of his tight curly hair, Thompson's career illustrated one of the problems - unprofessional enforcement - that led to increasing opposition to National Prohibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States was a national ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol, in place from 1920 to 1933. The ban was mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and the Volstead Act set down the rules for enforcing the ban, as well as defining which...
(1920–1933).
Thompson’s first mention in the press occurred after he shot a moonshine
Moonshine
Moonshine is an illegally produced distilled beverage...
still-tender through the stomach during a raid.
Later Thompson reported that bootlegger
Rum-running
Rum-running, also known as bootlegging, is the illegal business of transporting alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law...
s attacked him late one night as he was driving on a deserted country road. He claimed that, while a car was overtaking him , he was shot in the arm. However, police investigators found substantial evidence that Thompson had fabricated the whole story.
Thompson used a blackjack
Baton (law enforcement)
A truncheon or baton is essentially a club of less than arm's length made of wood, plastic, or metal...
on a man who had no reputation for violence. A jury hearing the resulting case denounced Thompson for his brutal beating of the defendant. The judge who presided at the trial later called Thompson’s supervisor into his chamber and warned him about Thompson’s behavior. Thompson later blackjacked a twelve year old boy, the boy’s mother, and his one-legged father. He subsequently pistol-whipped a manacled prisoner in full view of a crowd of onlookers who were outraged at his behavior.
Thompson‘s "favorite tactic was to walk into a joint, grab a pitcher of beer, and pour the contents on the bar, then offer to reimburse the nearest drinker. If the man denied that the beer was his, [Thompson] would strike him over the head with a shot-filled blackjack, and then wring a confession by painfully twisting the victim’s arm."
Bureau of Prohibition
Bureau of Prohibition
The Bureau of Prohibition was the federal law enforcement agency formed to enforce the National Prohibition Act of 1919, commonly known as the Volstead Act, which backed up the 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution regarding the prohibition of the manufacture, sale, and transportation...
officials defended their agents’ violence, arguing that they bravely had to consume alcohol as part of their undercover work and that it threatened their health and caused crazed behavior. However, a local newspaper asked why patrons who consumed the same beverages didn’t become similarly crazed with an uncontrollable desire to injure others and destroy property.
Police summoned to a drunken fight between a couple in a parked car asked the driver to move on. At that point the driver became belligerent and reached for something in his coat but the driver fired first, fatally wounding Thompson.
Thompson was eulogized as a martyr for the dry cause and his death was blamed on societal disrespect for law and order. Federal Prohibition officials later praised Thompson’s “zeal” but never acknowledged that he had ever used excessive force.