When the strikers still refused to break, news began to emerge of mysterious deaths in the cotton fields. The Mexican consulate sent a representative to Tulare County "to protect the interests of Mexicans." However, this did not stop local welfare officials from denying the strikers' families food relief during the strike. Law enforcement soon also stepped in to preserve "law and order," quickly deputizing an army of white locals and granting them "unlimited power." The Mexican American strikers were then openly attacked, and three were killed - but their killers were soon released with all charges dropped. Meanwhile, local and federal relief officials continued to deny the strikers any food relief, and soon scores of the strikers' children began to die from malnutrition. The U.S. federal government finally stepped in, establishing an arbitration committee. By the end of October 1933, a compromise was reached and the strike was finally ended.