Parker, William H.

Parker, William H. (1902–66) police chief, criminology adviser; born in Lead, S.D. An attorney with specialized police training, he joined the Los Angeles Police Department (1931). Near the close of World War II he developed the Police and Prisons Plan for the Army, as well as introducing democratic police systems to the German cities of Frankfurt and Munich. Returning to Los Angeles (1945), he was named police chief (1950–66) and earned a reputation for separating police work from political control; he also received worldwide attention for innovations in law enforcement. He was appointed honorary chief of the National Police of the Republic of Korea (1953) and the State Department chose him to redevelop police procedures in India (1964).