Frontier crime and punishment
Turn-of-the-century murder sparks racial shockwaves
, Assistant Editor
11-25-2009
(Editor’s note: This story is the second of two regarding the death of Town Marshal E. Cameron Coffin in 1906. He is being recognized as the first law enforcement officer to die in the line of duty in the area now known as Jeff Davis Parish.)
The death of a law enforcement officer in the line of duty always sends shockwaves through a community, and the death of Jennings Marshal Elihu Cameron Coffin in 1906 was no different.
However, in this heavily segregated turn-of-the-century town, the death of a white “law man” at a black man’s hand took on serious repercussions and sparked fears of a race riot. The frontier-like atmosphere of the young town also led to frontier-like justice as citizens patched together a quick posse to hunt Coffin’s killer.
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