The Dusenberg incident.

This event took place after I had been Chief in Columbus for about a year and to be truthful I was at the end of my patience with the many elements in the Village who took great delight in taking pot shots at me.

Columbus was not large enough to have it's own paper, but we did have a reporter in town who wrote a Columbus column for the Deming Headlight in Deming, NM. Each week the ongoing problems in the Village of Columbus with the "loose cannon" Police Chief filled this column, and if that were not enough the "Letter to the editor" column was filled with every type of rumor, opinion or consclusion that could be imagined.

I have a saying, "Like water off a ducks back", meaning this type of criticism I let roll off of my back like water off of a duck's back. I did not normally let it affect me. On the day this particular incident took place I was seated in the Village Office doing paperwork when the town clown slammed breathlessly through the front door with news. He said, "Chief, Dusenberg is up at the American Legion Coffee Shop tellin' everyone there what a no good sorry SOB you are and that he is going to run you out of town."

Now normally this kind of information given by this man would have no affect on me, but because my tolerance to BS level was low that day, I asked him to tell me just what he said. He told me this man was really raking me over the coals to a large group of townspeople and that I'd better do something about it. If this sounds a little bit like the script from a Grade B movie, you would be correct; but this really happened.

My rage began to grow as I thought about how many times I had had to listen to this man's ranting at Village Council meetings and did not respond, and the more I thought about it the more angry I became until I walked outside to the car, got in and drove the few short blocks to the American Legion building.

I walked into the building through a side door and when I entered Mr. Dusenberg was engaged in a long tirade against me and the twenty five or so people there were listening to him in rapture. No one noticed me for a short moment as I listened and so I walked over to his location and sat across from him at his table. He turned and looked at me finally and stopped his tirade in mid sentence. He began choking and his face became red as though he might have choked on something, so I handed him a glass of water to help him out.

After he had gained his composure again, I told him, "Mr. Dusenberg I am tired of hearing about you cussing me behind my back and so I have come here to allow you to say what you have to say to my face." Mr. Dusenberg with an extremely red face, had nothing further to say. I then said to him, "Mr. Dusenberg I have given you a chance to speak and you haven't, so it's my turn. I am not telling people about you to your back, what I have to say is to your face and in front of your friends. You sir, are a contemptable liar and I will not allow you to lie about me behind my back without consequences again!" I gave him a chance to speak but he didn't seem capable of doing so, so I rose to leave when he spoke to me in a very rattled voice saying, "If you didn't have that badge I'd kick your **s, I took the badge off and slammed it on the table, then he said, "If you didn't have that gun, I'd kick your **s. I then made an incredible blunder and pulled the pistol out of it's holster and slammed it on the table in front of me.

He then said, "If you didn't have those glasses on I'd kick you **s. When I did this he smacked me open handed across the face with his hand. I am a hardened man who has taken part in many fist fights and this man possessed no chance against me in a fight, but when he struck me with his hand I experienced a strange occurence. I saw the entire event happening from the time he struck me until it was over, all seeming to happen in an instant. I saw that when I punched him I would kill him with the punch and I even experienced the horror of seeing him lying on the floor in front of me blood rushing from his mouth.

Several witnesses reported that after Dusenberg struck me I had a dazed look come over my face and then I just simply dropped my hands to my side as he struck me several hard blows to the face. It was over very quickly and I grabbed my gun and badge and left as fast as possible. I was not affected in the least by his blows, but the vision was so detailed and complete that I was much shaken that I had allowed myself to be placed in this position so easily.

I knew that Dusenberg's life had been saved. I endured an independant investigation by a detective from the Luna County Sheriff's Office, a good friend but one who was totally unbiased in the investigation. No charges were filed against me and I refused to file against Dusenberg when the investigation determined that he had struck me first in the fracas. Mr. Dusenberg was vindicated and became a celebrity of sorts for having put down the Chief in a spectacular fashion.

I left knowing that a much more terrible ending was diverted by the hand of God. I have worked diligently since that time to not be affected by the emotion of the moment, but to always think things through before acting.