The Onion Field is a 1973 nonfiction book by Joseph Wambaugh, a sergeant for the Los Angeles Police Department, regarding the kidnapping of two plainclothes LAPD officers by a pair of criminals during a traffic stop, and the subsequent murder of LAPD Officer Ian James Campbell. For the song by James Blunt, see 1973 (song). ... Joseph Aloysius Wambaugh, Jr. ... LAPD and L.A.P.D. redirect here. ... for other uses please see Crime (disambiguation) A crime is an act that violates a political or moral law. ...

On March 9, 1963, LAPD officers Campbell and Karl Hettinger pulled over a car for no rear license plate light on a Hollywood street.^[1] The car contained two men, Jimmy Lee Smith (aka "Jimmy Youngblood") and Gregory Ulas Powell, fresh from a string of robberies. Powell, who was driving, pulled a gun on Campbell and forced Hettinger to give up his gun to Smith. The two officers were then forced into Powell's car and driven to an onion field around Bakersfield where Campbell was fatally shot. Hettinger was able to escape, running nearly four miles to reach a farmhouse.^[1] The killing occurred primarily because Powell assumed that the kidnapping of the officers alone constituted a capital crime under the state's Little Lindbergh Law. However, Powell's interpretation was incorrect, as under the Little Lindbergh Law kidnapping becomes a capital crime only if the victims are harmed or the kidnappers try to ransom them. is the 68th day of the year (69th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Nickname: Location of Bakersfield, California Coordinates: , Country United States State California County Kern County Founded 1869 Government  - Mayor Harvey Hall Area  - City  131 sq mi (339. ... Following the historic Lindbergh kidnapping (the abduction and murder of Charles Lindberghs toddler son), the United States Congress adopted a federal kidnapping statute—popularly known as the Federal Kidnapping Act 18 USC § 1201(a)(1) (also known as The Lindbergh Law) — which was intended to let federal authorities step...

Aftermath

Powell was arrested on the night of the murder. The following day, Smith was captured and arrested as well. The lead investigator on the case was Sgt. Pierce Brooks. Both were convicted of murder and sentenced to die, but their sentences were commuted to life in prison following a court decision that temporarily put a stop to executions in California.

Though Hettinger was able to escape, he was scorned by his fellow officers. Eventually a police training video was made using his experience as example of what not to do when stopping and approaching a vehicle. Hettinger suffered severe emotional trauma as a result, and people who knew him said he was never the same afterwards. He was forced to resign from the LAPD after committing some acts of petty shoplifting and developing a drinking problem. Later in life, Hettinger was appointed to serve as a Kern County supervisor; he died of a liver disease in 1994 at the age of 59. The book details these events, as well as the lengthy trials and continual appeals of the two criminals. In legal parlance, a trial is an event in which parties to a dispute present information (in the form of evidence) in a formal setting, usually a court, before a judge, jury, or other designated finder of fact, in order to achieve a resolution to their dispute. ... In law, an appeal is a process for making a formal challenge to an official decision. ...

Powell has never been released from state prison; his most recent board hearing, at which he was denied parole, was in January 2007. However, Smith was initially paroled in 1982, but subsequently was re-incarcerated several times on drug-related parole violations. In December 2006, Smith failed to report to his parole officer and a warrant was issued for his arrest. In February 2007, a man matching Smith's description was detained by police in Los Angeles' Skid Row area and eventually identified as Smith. He was arrested and charged with violating his parole, and sent to the Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic, California. On April 7, 2007, while incarcerated there, Smith died of an apparent heart attack at age 76.^[2] The term skid row or skid road is used to refer to a run-down or dilapidated urban area. ... Castaic, California (2000 Census population 22,173 in the 91384 ZIP Code) is an unincorporated community in Los Angeles County, USA. It lies north of Santa Clarita in Castaic Canyon, a few miles from the Santa Clarita Valley and Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park. ... April 7 is the 97th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (98th in leap years). ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ...

Film adaptation

The book was adapted into a 1979 film of the same name directed by Harold Becker. It starred John Savage, James Woods, Franklyn Seales and Ted Danson.^[3] Harold Becker is a film director and producer from New York. ... John Savage (born John Youngs on August 25, 1949 in Old Bethpage, New York) is an American film actor, producer, production manager and composer. ... This article contains a trivia section. ... Franklyn Seales was born July 15, 1952 in St. ... Ted Danson (born Edward Bridge Danson III on December 29, 1947) is an American actor most notable for his television work, and specifically, for his role as central character Sam Malone in the sitcom Cheers, and his role as Dr. John Becker on the series Becker. ...

References

1. ^ ^{a b} 'Onion Field' killer dead at 76. Retrieved on 2007-04-08.
2. ^ Quinones, Sam (April 7, 2007). Jimmy Lee Smith, infamous 'Onion Field' cop killer, dead at 76. Los Angeles Times.
3. ^ The Onion Field at the Internet Movie Database.

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... April 8 is the 98th day of the year (99th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This just IN !!!:paris hiltons new dog. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ...

External links

• Online memorial to Officer Ian James Campbell