Wanted Dead or Alive in the Old West

A key cliche in westerns is the Wanted Dead or Alive poster. There’s been many times on the boards when we’ve discussed things considered to be part of western life that really weren’t based on reality.

So, teneral question: what’s the Straight Dope on fugitives being wanted dead or alive in the old west? Fact, myth, or exaggeration?

Specific question: In Django Unchained, Christoph Waltz’s character just offs fugitives without even trying to capture them alive, claims they were wanted dead or alive, and can I have my reward, please. Even if the dead or alive thing was based in fact, the idea of just slaying a fugitive seems far-fetched. So, was that in any way grounded in reality?

Let me add a closely-related question to that: Were there really “outlaws”?

Today, I think the word “outlaw” is commonly understood to be simply a synonym for “criminal”. But I’ve read that, in terms of the Old Wild West, it had a more specific meaning: It meant that a criminal had been officially declared to be “outside the protection of the law” (by who? the sheriff?) and thus could be shot on sight by any gunslinger.

Is that true? Were people really declared “outside the protection of the law”? If so, that gives legal cover to all those bounty hunters who captured those outlaws, however dead they captured them.

No. The meaning in your first quoted sentence is the same as the meaning in the Wild West. The “outside the protection of the law” meaning was very early English common law, and has not been applicable since, hell, 1000 years ago?

United States District Judge Isaac Parker had deputies that went after fugitives in the Oklahoma territories. Most were arrested and brought back alive to face the court. There was no appeal from his court.

109 deputy marshals died in the line of duty. It was a dangerous job.

What has this to do with the subject of the OP? Yes, being a U.S. Marshall between 1875 and 1896 was a dangerous job. Some were killed in such places as California, Alabama, Tennessee, and, of course, Oklahoma. So what?

I’ve avoided answering the OP because I don’t know. I did answer a question I do know the answer to. Your post has nothing to do with anything so far posted in this thread.

Exaggeration. Based on the court statistics from Parker’s court. Fugitives were located, arrested, and transported to Fort Smith Arkansas to face trial. Parker was the Federal law for the Oklahoma Indian territories. He was appointed by Ulysses S. Grant.

How many fugitives died in conflicts with deputy marshals is unknown. But the statistics speak for themselves. 13,490 cases were tried in that court in about 20 years. Deputy Marshall’s brought back fugitives whenever possible. They weren’t bringing back corpses tied to horses as often depicted in movies and tv.

One of the most iconic images in tv and movie Westerns is a lawman or bounty hunter riding into town leading a horse with a body strapped to the saddle. I’m sure it happened occasionally, but most rode back to Fort Smith in chains to face trial.

Unlike the movies, murder warrants did get issued in the old west. Its a myth that old West shootings were tolerated. That you could shoot somebody down in the street, have a drink in the saloon, and casually ride out of town.

Your statistics only applied to Oklahoma, not “the Old West.” Show me some data for others states and territories.

Well, that’s just one incident. Expand it to perhaps hundreds and I might accept your theory.

Wasn’t Osama Bin Laden wanted dead or alive by the USA?

There was once a string of stagecoach robberies in and around Tombstone, Arizona Territory. According to Jeff Guinn’s account of the gunfight at the OK Corral, these robberies so distressed the Wells Fargo company that they put out a bounty for the robbers dead or alive — a grossly illegal act that could have made the company an accessory to murder. (Most of the robbers ended up being killed in unrelated incidents and the reward was never claimed.)