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ANSLINGER'S GORE FILE
reefer boy
THE SACRAMENTO REEFER BOY

Name: - Ray Shields - Location: - Sacramento, Ca. - Date: - Mar 1935

What the Narc’s were claiming
"A sixteen-year-old boy in California was arrested for burglary.   He had stolen a revolver and was on his way to stage a hold-up when he was arrested.   He was under the influence of marihuana"   -- The Union Signal (WCTU) Jan. 30, 1937

"A sixteen-year old boy in CALIFORNIA was arrested for burglary.   He had stolen a revolver and was on his way to stage a hold-up when arrested.   He was under the influence of MARIHUANA."   -- Box9, File7 - PennState Collection

"The Sacramento Police Department reported that in March, 1935, a sixteen year old boy was in jail for burglary.   He stole a revolver and was going out to stage a hold-up when he was arrested. He was under the influence of marihuana. The two men who sold the drug to the boy were sentenced to the State Penitentiary."   -- Box9, File7 - PennState Collection

Sacramento   "The Sacramento Police Department reported that in March, 1935, a 16 year old boy was in jail for burglary. He stole a revolver and was going out to stage a hold-up when he was arrested.   He was under the influence of marihuana.   The two men who sold the drug to the boy were sentenced to the State Penitentiary."   -- ILLICIT TRAFFIC IN MARIHUANA - aka Gore File

"Here's a 16-year old boy in California, arrested for burglary," "He stole a revolver and was on his way to stage a hold-up when arrested. He was under the influence of marihuana."   -- Oakland Tribune (Newspaper) Oct. 11, 1936 “Don't be a MuggleHead”

"A sixteen-year-old boy, caught in a Sacramento burglary was 'high' on marihuana."   -- MARIHUANA; The New Dangerous Drug (pamphlet) by Frederick T. Merrill 1950 version

"CALIFORNIA --- Sixteen-year-old boy, caught about to stage a holdup, found to be under the influence of marihuana."   -- Survey Graphic (Magazine) April 1938

"A 16-year-old boy in California was caught about to stage a holdup under the influence of marihuana. -- "Here's a 16-year old boy in California, arrested for burglary," he said, grabbing a sheath of reports from his desk and turning to the case cited. "He stole a revolver and was on his way to stage a hold-up when arrested. He was under the influence of marihuana."   -- Oakland Tribune (Newspaper) Oct. 11, 1936 “Don't be a MuggleHead”

"Then, there was another case of a 16-year-old how who was arrested in California for burglary. Under -the influence of marihuana he had stolen a revolver and was on the way to stage a holdup when apprehended."   -- INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL DIGEST – Sep, 1937

"A sixteen-year-old boy was arrested in California for burglary. Under the influence of marijuana he had stolen a revolver and was on the way to stage a holdup when apprehended."   -- American Magazine “Marijuana, Assassin of Youth” By H.J Anslinger - July 1937

"A sixteen-year-old in California thinks he is an oldtime road agent and tries to hold up a stage."   -- Narcotic Agent: by Maurice Helbrant (book) 1941

"A sixteen-year-old boy, caught in a Sacramento burglary was 'high' on marihuana. Two California men were sent to prison for cultivating the marihuana habit among boys."   --

Et Al Mentions. .
NEWSPAPER ACCOUNTS:
WOODLAND DAILY DEMOCRAT (Woodland, California)
[S]- March 20, 1935p4 - “NARCOTIC RING LEADERS HELD”
SACRAMENTO -- Two ringleaders of a Sacramento narcotic ring preying upon youthful victims taught to use Marijuana were arrested by police.
Tuesday night after a terrific struggle in an isolated shack near the city incinerator. D.F. Alfred, 29, Eddie Squires 40, said by police to have allegedly been engaged in “training” Sacramento youths to smoke Marijuana in order to increase the market for the narcotic, were arrested and charge with violation of the state [. . . ns] act.


SACRAMENTO, BEE
[S]- Mar 20, 1935 p1 - “Dope Ringleaders Seized Here After Fierce Fight; Preyed on Young Victims”
[S]- Mar 20, 1935 p1 - “Police Judge Holds Three Men for Superior Court”
[S]- May 13, 1935p20 - “Head of Narcotic Gang Is Sentenced to Folsom”
Eddie Squires, 40, who is accused of heading a narcotic gang that instructed Sacramento youths in the use of marijuana, to-day was sentence to Folsom Prison after he pleaded guilty before Superior Judge Martin I. Welsh to a charge of violating the state poison act.
D. F. Alfred, 29, who was arrested with Squires by Detective Sergeant E.J. Cox and Detective Arthur Thomas on March 20th in a shack near the city incinerator, likewise pleaded guilty but applied for probation. The application will be acted upon May 23rd.
Squires was sentenced after Judge Welsh was informed the defendant previously served two prison terms for grand larceny and one term for violation the federal narcotic law. Alfred has no felony record.


[Key-finder - Case#CA32]


We wish to express our sincere thanks to the staff of the Sacramento Public Library, without whose help we would never have been able to locate and ID this case.
Seriously, if it wasn't for their (Sacramento P.L.) work, we wouldn't have found this kid.   Just look at what we as a museum originally had to work with:
"A sixteen-year-old boy, caught in a Sacramento burglary was 'high' on marihuana.   Two California men were sent to prison for cultivating the marihuana habit among boys."
Nice that the city is mentioned, but not much else.   Fortunately for us, we eventually run into another mention stating that this occurred in “March of 1935.”
"The Sacramento Police Department reported that in March, 1935, a 16 year old boy was in jail for burglary.   He stole a revolver and was going out to stage a hold-up when he was arrested.   He was under the influence of marihuana.   The two men who sold the drug to the boy were sentenced to the State Penitentiary. "
But even equipped with the given year and month, this author (who lives in Okla.) doubts that we would have been able to find anything had it not been for their help.   It was they who painstakingly went through their old micro-film back issues of the Sacramento Bee, and eventually found the following article:

Reefer Boy
THE SACRAMENTO BEE – Mar 20, 1935 p1
Dope Ringleaders Seized Here After Fierce Fight; Preyed on Young Victims

“Two ringleaders of a Sacramento narcotic ring preying upon youthful victims taught to use marijuana were arrested by police last night after a terrific struggle in an isolated shack near the city incinerator.   D.F. Alfred, 29, and Eddie Squires, 40, said by police to have allegedly been engaged in “training” Sacramento youths to smoke marijuana in order to increase the market for the narcotic, were arrested and charged with violation of the state poisons act after a fight with Sergeant E. J. Cox and Detective Arthur Thomas of the police narcotic squad.
Identify of the pair and their hideout was revealed by Ray Shields, 16-year-old Oregon youth, as an act of gratitude to police, he said, for the treatment he had received during the past 10 days he has been held in jail as a delinquent minor.

TELLS OF "DOPE" LESSONS
Shields told Cox that the two men, with others whose names he did not learn, showed him how to smoke marijuana almost a year ago. In the same “class” were three other youths under 21 years of age whose names are known by the police.
For several weeks, Shields said, they were supplied with cigarets free.   Then, when they had formed the habit they were forced to purchase the narcotic from Alfred and Squires.   If they did not have the money, they were denied the weed, and many times, Shields said, they sold articles of clothing to obtain the necessary price.
When Cox and Thomas broke into the cabin last night, the men who were said by the officers to have been drinking, denied selling marijuana and attempted to throw the detectives out.
At that time, however, two youths aged 22 and 19 knocked at the door and asked to purchase some cigarets.   After admitting to Cox that they, too, were victims of these men, they were released.
As the youths left, Squires attempted to hit Cox over the head with a large pair of pliers.   Cox knocked him out with a blow to the jaw and handcuffed him.   Meanwhile, Thomas was battling to subdue Alfred, who threw a heavy chair through a window in an attempt to halt the detectives advance.   Alfred, after a struggle, was handcuffed to the bed.
In the city jail Squires and Alfred were identified by Shields as his “teachers.”   Squires admitted being released from the Los Angeles county jail on narcotic charges last December, Cox said.
A large quantity of marijuana cached in tin cans was seized."

Note that very little else is known about Ray Shields, using our museum resources we were not able to locate any further mention of the boy thereafter.   However, we were able to locate Eddie Squires prison records:


EDDIE SQUIRES:
It appears that D.F. Alfred (assuming that that was his real name) disappeared from the pages of history shortly thereafter.   Or at least we have not been able to locate anymore information about him.   One thing is certain, he did not serve any prison time over this incident. However, Mr. Edward (Eddie) Squires was a horse of a different color.   Just his last name “Squire,” such as in Dr. Brown Squire, makes one do a double take.   However, unlike Dr. Squire, Eddie seems to have been an out and out looser.   Thus it would appear at first that Harry Anslinger had every right to tout this case as a perfect example of a bestial crime committed “While Under The Influence” of Medical Cannabis.

Eddity Squire
Eddity Squire

Note that he had previously been arrested on drug charges and future San Quentin files would show that he was going to get in trouble (again, mostly over narcotics) in the not too distant future, soon after his release over these charges.   All and all, he lived a very sad and tragic life.

HOWEVER, even if you don’t like guys like this, he still serves as a perfect example of the failure of Harry Anslinger’s Drug War policy of arresting ourselves out of the drug problem.   As Anslinger would have put it, “The solution is simple, we throw them in jail . . that’s it.”   Well Harry, it don’t work, and this guy Eddie (who believe me, he was a real revolving door), is proof.   Time after time he would be sentenced to jail for narcotics (the serious stuff like Heroin) and time after time, after his release, he would be rearrested for same.

Maybe psychologists, priests, or physicians can come up with a solution that works, maybe not.   But one thing is certain, (as Eddie here shows), the heavy handed approach of incarcerating addicted persons for chemical substances has shown itself to have been a total failure.



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