For many Americans, police shootings in Louisiana and Minnesota earlier this summer were strikingly reminiscent of similar instances across the nation in recent years. The prominence of both the shooting—and the retaliation—has sparked a new round of questioning about the role of local police in their communities. On this episode, we’ll explore how the first municipal police departments were assembled to quell riots in the 1840s, not fight crime. And we’ll consider what happens when the police don’t protect those they serve.