Thomas W. Broadnax served as a patrolman on the San Diego Police Department from 1899 to 1903, when he resigned to become Sheriff.

Sergeant Broadnax first requested a leave of absence from the San Diego Police Department from August 22 to November 24^th.  Per the Union (August 5, 1902), “This will give him a little over two months in which to electioneer for the office of sheriff on the Democratic ticket, and six days in which to recover from the shock.”

However, on Thursday, November 6, 1902, he defeated Charles Stewart (the Republican candidate) by 26 votes – 2,856 to 2,830.  This was viewed as a huge upset, as Broadnax was running as a Democrat in a heavily Republican County.

Per the San Diego Union, March 18, 1903, Sheriff Broadnax requested the opinion of the District Attorney regarding the increase in the Sheriff’s pay due to the “act of 1901”, and was probably caught off guard by the result.  The DA ruled that under the State Constitution, the Sheriff’s pay was fixed at $8,000 and could not be increased after his election or during his term of office.  The “act of 1901” would have made the base pay $7,800, but would have allowed the Sheriff to collect additional fees that would have significantly increased the total pay.

During this time, the County of San Diego included what is now Imperial County, and the Sheriff’s territory extended all the way to the Colorado river and the State of Arizona.

This created challenges.  The editor of the Imperial Press threatened to form a new County if the Sheriff didn’t appoint a Deputy for Imperial, but the Sheriff refused, citing that a Deputy acting alone that far from the Sheriff would put the Sheriff at risk for lawsuits if the Deputy acted improperly.

In June, 1903, a reportedly drunk Constable Burke shot and killed a Mexican worker in the mining area of Picacho (on the Arizona border near the Colorado river).  This led to a general uprising and melee, during which Burke was shot and killed by Raphael Lopez.  At that time, that was nearly a 300-mile rail trip from San Diego.

In 1907, Imperial County was formed, with a County seat in El Centro.  That ended the disputes about establishing a San Diego Sheriff’s Deputy in Imperial.

In 1906, he ran for Sheriff but was defeated by Fred M. Jennings.  He then engaged in real estate business in San Diego until 1912 (Broadnax & Neale), when he moved to the Imperial Valley, where he and his wife established a 160-acre homestead.

In an odd twist, former Sheriff Broadnax was cited to appear before the police court for speeding.  Per the Union (June 15, 1911), “Mr. Broadnax is known as a most careful driver, but the joke is that somebody purloined his machine from the garage where it was stored last Sunday and indulged in a ‘joy ride,’ and Tom has to answer.”

Thomas Broadnax died March 16, 1920, at his ranch near El Centro.  He was survived by his wife Ella N. Broadnax.