Ramsey County History – Winter 2002: “A Memoir: Jimmy Griffin, St. Paul’s First Black Deputy Police Chief, Remembers His First Years on the Force”

A Memoir: Jimmy Griffin, St. Paul’s First Black Deputy Police Chief, Remembers His First Years on the Force
Author: Jimmy Griffin with Kwame J.C. McDonald

In this excerpt from his autobiography, Jimmy Griffin, one of St. Paul’s best-remembered police officers, tells some of his stories. Born in 1906, Griffin grew up in the Rondo neighborhood and graduated from Central High School. Hired by the St. Paul Police Department, he was drafted into the Navy in 1945 and returned to the force in 1946. The article includes stories of dealing with bar fights, serving warrants, and improving work conditions for officers on the force through union activity. He experienced some racism, but he also had close friendships with white officers. Griffin tells of times when he made mistakes but still moved up the ladder, became a sergeant, and eventually gained promotion to deputy chief of police. He was St. Paul’s first African American to hold this position.
PDF of Griffin article