Why are sheriff’s badges almost always star-shaped?
Jane McKenna
Spokane, Washington
Primitive societies believed the star possessed magical powers, principal of which was the power to guard against danger and control evil forces. Down through the ages the star maintained that symbol of guardianship and was adopted by peace officers as a badge for that reason.
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Marshall Trimble is Arizona’s official historian and the Wild West History Association’s vice president. His latest book is 2018’s Arizona Oddities: A Land of Anomalies and Tamales. Send your question, with your city/state of residence, to marshall.trimble@scottsdalecc.edu or Ask the Marshall, P.O. Box 8008, Cave Creek, AZ 85327.