Lyric discussion by T_D_Phoenix 

Cover art for Sandman lyrics by America

The sandman is a policeman.

@T_D_Phoenix - Exactly. The song is from 1971, the beginning of the Nixon Drug War, and is set in the future. The friend has been on the lam for many years, and the singer accidentally encounters him during a trip the singer has taken to somewhere far from their former mutual home. The Sandman is a fanatical vice cop with an evil reputation in their hometown, who has a reputation for embellishing charges by lying and other nefarious cop tactics, and is chasing the friend for some innocuous "crime" like sharing a magic mushroom with a friend (maybe the singer)...