"Deputy sheriffs."
"Got a warrant?"
"We don’t need a warrant if there’s a riot."
"Well, we got no riots here," said the gate guard.
– John Steinbeck
The Grapes of Wrath, Chapter 24. Corrupt police know exactly when to turn up at Weedpatch camp to quell a riot, because they are involved in the planning of the riot! But the migrant community is one step ahead. They head off the riot by identifying the troublemakers, so denying the police legal cause to enter. All thanks to the leadership of Ezra Huston and his Central Committee and the cool heads of the migrants.