Wesley Pomeroy
Wesley A.C. Pomeroy (January 1, 1920 – May 4, 1998) was an American lawyer, Assistant U.S. Attorney General, federal coordinator for the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, assistant director of the DEA, and founding member of various humanitarian and policy-making organizations. Biography Early years Pomeroy was born in Burbank, California. He attended Pacific Union College in Napa County, where he met, and later married, Marjorie Cusick. He began his law enforcement career at the California Highway Patrol as a state trooper. In 1943, he joined the Marines and served in the Pacific during World War II. After the war, he resumed his job as a California Highway Patrol officer. He joined the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office in 1951, where he rose through the ranks to become undersheriff in 1960. While in this position, he pioneered the department's work-furlough and honor camp facilities, which were the only such programs in the nation at the time. During this time, he also spent his evenings attending law school. He received a law degree from San Francisco Law School and subsequently passed the California bar exam. In 1964, he was charged with managing security for the Republican National Convention in the Cow Palace, San Francisco, California. The convention was met with great controversy as there was conflict not only within the Republican Party itself but also from anti-war protesters and civil rights activists. Before this convention, political party conventions were only given cursory security staff unless a former or active president attended, with which Secret Service would be present. Due to several violent and non-violent threats towards the convention, Pomeroy was brought in to manage 18 different police forces providing security to the venue. Due to his diplomatic efforts and management, the convention was successful and not disrupted. Pomeroy continued to serve as a consultant on security for national conventions of both political parties until 1992. Government career His success managing the Republican National Convention drew national attention, and in 1967 he was made coordinator of federal law enforcement. Under Warren Christopher, who was the deputy attorney general, he managed the Federal Command Post at the Conrad Hilton hotel overlooking Grant Park in Chicago during the 1968 Democratic Convention. Mayor Richard Daley had requested federal back-up after numerous threats by protesters. After assessing the situation, Pomeroy was frustrated with Mayor Daley's approaches, especially putting officers on 12-hour shifts, as well as being informed that he had no jurisdiction over the Chicago police force. He did have control over the Illinois National Guard and ordered them to replace the Chicago Police Department at various times, including one night in front of the Hilton hotel. Pomeroy is credited to have, despite Mayor Daley's interference, kept the situation from becoming worse than it could have been. Pomeroy was appointed Assistant Attorney General in 1968 by Ramsey Clark, the Attorney General in President Lyndon B. Johnson's administration. Clark appointed him to help coordinate anti-crime efforts, as well as heading the Federal area of the investigation into the assassination