Los Angeles sprawls across roughly 500 square miles in Southern California, surrounded by mountains, valleys, and the magnificent Pacific coastline. As the second largest city in the United States, behind New York city, it’s populated by around 4 million residents, enjoying its famously sunny, semi-arid, Mediterranean climate.
After the Mexican-American War in the mid 1800s, the United States took control of California, and Los Angeles was officially incorporated in 1850. In Spanish, Los Angeles means “the angels,” and the city has garnered the nickname the “City of Angels.”
But for a city with such an idyllic name, it’s had to deal with more than its fair share of criminal activity. In the 1850s, a volunteer police force struggled to deal with a burgeoning population and lawlessness in the dusty, western town. Finally in 1869, the city established its first paid police force, hiring six officers to work two shifts under the direction of City Marshal William Warren.
With the discovery of oil, expansion of industry,
