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Champ Crow Hunter Boasts Kill of 1423

August 2, 1947
Los Angeles

The crows and ravens of the Santa Barbara orange and walnut groves cower on the wing before the 20-, 16- and 12-gauge shotguns of Richey Haddon, bloodthirsty claimant of more bounties on the pesky avians than any other Californian. Fish and Game pays 15 cents a bird, so Haddon shoots them out of the sky–4681 since the bounty was enacted in September 1945 (that’s $213.45 in crow cash).

Haddon doesn’t just shoot crows-he eats them, and sleeps on a mattress stuffed with their pin feathers.

The Killer of Crows lives at 1209 W. 38th Street, an address migrating birds will want to avoid (or perhaps crap on, under cover of night).

Kim Cooper

Kim Cooper is the creator of 1947project, the crime-a-day time travel blog that spawned Esotouric’s popular crime bus tours, including The Real Black Dahlia. She is the author of The Kept Girl, the acclaimed historical mystery starring the young Raymond Chandler and the real-life Philip Marlowe, and of The Raymond Chandler Map of Los Angeles. With husband Richard Schave, Kim curates the Salons and forensic science seminars of LAVA- The Los Angeles Visionaries Association. When the third generation Angeleno isn’t combing old newspapers for forgotten scandals, she is a passionate advocate for historic preservation of signage, vernacular architecture and writer’s homes. Kim was for many years the editrix of Scram, a journal of unpopular culture. Her books include Fall in Love For Life, Bubblegum Music is the Naked Truth, Lost in the Grooves and an oral history of Neutral Milk Hotel.

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Kim Cooper

Kim Cooper is the creator of 1947project, the crime-a-day time travel blog that spawned Esotouric’s popular crime bus tours, including The Real Black Dahlia. She is the author of The Kept Girl, the acclaimed historical mystery starring the young Raymond Chandler and the real-life Philip Marlowe, and of The Raymond Chandler Map of Los Angeles. With husband Richard Schave, Kim curates the Salons and forensic science seminars of LAVA- The Los Angeles Visionaries Association. When the third generation Angeleno isn’t combing old newspapers for forgotten scandals, she is a passionate advocate for historic preservation of signage, vernacular architecture and writer’s homes. Kim was for many years the editrix of Scram, a journal of unpopular culture. Her books include Fall in Love For Life, Bubblegum Music is the Naked Truth, Lost in the Grooves and an oral history of Neutral Milk Hotel.

One thought on “Champ Crow Hunter Boasts Kill of 1423”

  1. Her name was Andrea and she was 24. His name was Sylvester and he was 26, a World War II veteran working at Lockheed. And they were in love. So like many young couples, they wanted to get married.

    But unlike every other couple, they were refused a marriage license at the Los Angeles County clerk’s office because Andrea Perez was white and Sylvester S. Davis Jr. was black. And Section 60 of the California Civil Code stated: “All marriages of white persons with Negroes, Mongolians, members of the Malay race, or Mulattoes are illegal and voidâ€Â while Section 69 forbid issuing licenses for such marriages.

    But Andrea loved Sylvester, so she found an attorney, Daniel G. Marshall, to challenge the law before the California Supreme Court. Ruling 4 to 3 on Oct. 1, 1948, in the case of Perez vs. Lippold, the justices said:

    “We hold that Sections 60 and 69 are not only too vague and uncertain to be enforceable regulations of a fundamental right, but that they violated the equal protection of the laws clause of the United States Constitution by impairing the right of individuals to marry on the basis of race alone and by arbitrarily and unreasonably discriminating against certain racial groups.â€Â

    In a dissenting opinion, Justice John W. Shenk said: “It is difficult to see why such laws, valid when enacted and constitutionally enforceable for nearly 200 years, are now unconstitutional under the same constitution and with no change in the factual situation.â€Â

    Andrea and Sylvester got their marriage license Dec. 13, 1948. Andrea Perez Davis died Sept. 9, 2000, at the age of 78. Sylvester Davis is apparently living quietly in Los Angeles. The decision in Perez vs. Lippold is frequently cited in the continuing fight over gay marriage.

    Links:

    Daniel G. Marshall’s daughter recalls the case:
    https://www.voicesofcivilrights.org/Approved_Letters/00198.html

    Perez vs. Lippold: https://brownat50.org/brownCases/PreBrownCases/PerezvLippoldCal1948.html

    https://www.lmharnisch.com

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