Founded in 1852 and located in California's East Bay, Oakland is one of several cities incorporated in Alameda County. From the beginning, Oakland has been the dominant city in the area, serving as the county seat since 1873. With a police department established in 1853, crime in early Oakland was not a major issue; though influenced by the leavings of California gold rush lawlessness, Oakland in its formative years was not atypically criminal. Despite a decrease in felony arrests in the latter part of the 19th century, the size of the police force grew. The primary policing concerns during the early decades of Oakland's history were maintaining order and discipline, as evidenced by a majority of arrests for public disturbances such as brawls, drunkenness, and vagrancy. The first drug arrests in Oakland arose in the 1880s with the formation of drugs laws that made the sale or use of opium a misdemeanor. Reflecting the beginnings of a history of racial tensions, many of these arrests…