SCOUTING YESTERDAY | Deadwood police chief's shooting of prize fighter brings buzz to Black Hills
This week in South Dakota history: Jan. 3-9
South Dakotans in the Black Hills were captivated by a use-of-force case involving a police chief and former prize fighter that went to trial 75 years ago this week.
Jury selection got the first-degree manslaughter trial of Deadwood Chief of Police Nestor Erickson underway on Jan. 9, 1950, after the lawman the prior summer fatally shot John Gorman, who’d not only been a trained boxer but also a former police within Erickson’s agency.
Known as “Johnny Ryan” in the ring, Gorham had ran for — but lost — the Democratic Party’s 1938 nomination for Lawrence County Sheriff. Following his defeat, Gorham later joined the Deadwood Police Department, according to the Deadwood Pioneer-Times.
Though his tenure as a lawman didn’t last, his reputation as a bruiser persisted until his highly-publicized death.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to The Dakota Scout to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.