Warning. This episode contains scenes and images of graphic violence that may not be suitable

for all audiences. Listener discretion is advised.

On June 18, 1852, bounty hunter Henry Love and his friend appeared before a justice of

the peace in the small town of Los Angeles. In 1852, LA, as it would eventually be known,

was a little backwater village of about 1600 people. Henry Love explained that he and his

friend were in the area to capture a couple of men from Sonora, Mexico. The Sonorans were

charged with committing murders and robberies in Mariposa County, 250 miles north of Los Angeles,

between the towns of Modesto and Fresno. The most egregious of the murders was that of Alan

Ruddle, an innocent and wealthy pioneer. Love and his colleague tracked the two bandits to a

roadhouse north of present-day Los Angeles. The bounty hunters confronted the bandits,

and after a brief exchange of gunshots, the hunters had captured one of the two bandits,

but the other escaped. Love and his friend started trekking back to Los Angeles,

hurting their captive on foot while they rode on horseback. The prisoner, a member of Joaquin

Murietta's gang, complained of fatigue and made several attempts to escape. At one point,

he complained of thirst and pointed to a nearby ravine. He told the bounty hunters that there

was plenty of water near the ravine. Henry Love gave in. He dismounted and walked with the

prisoner until they came upon a small clump of bushes. The prisoner suddenly darted toward the

bushes in an effort to escape. Henry Love knew his clunky boots and spurs would have prevented him

from easily chasing the prisoner through the bushes. So, in that split second when he realized what

would happen, Love pissed a whip to the prisoner. He intended to stop the man from running,

but the weapon discharged and shot the prisoner through the head. The prisoner died instantly.

So, Henry Love had no prisoner and thus no reward money from the Ruttle family. He had botched

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