In Memoriam
A Tribute to Our Fallen Officers
Officer Allen Moore
The first Lawrence Police officer known to die in the line of duty was Officer Allen Moore, who died from a gunshot from his own weapon in the early morning hours of May 22, 1901. The incident precipitating his death occurred at the Union Pacific train deport in North Lawrence. A plaque honoring the memory of Officer Allen Moore was dedicated on May 22, 1998, and hangs in the Union Pacific Depot, now home of the Lawrence Visitor Information Center.
Officer Wilson Pringle
The second Lawrence Police Officer to die in the line of duty was Officer Wilson Pringle. On October 11, 1909, Pringle was shot while investigating a suspect in a robbery, dying five days later. The suspect escaped the scene, but more than a month later he and another individual robbed a bank in Eudora, KS. The suspect who shot Pringle committed suicide when surrounded by law enforcement officers.
Officer Melvin Howe
The third police officer killed in the line of duty was Officer Melvin Howe. Howe was shot and killed on April 24, 1931 by a suspect he and another officer had stopped who was “driving suspicious” and matched the description of a suspect responsible for a robbery in northeast Kansas. The suspect eluded local law enforcement officers but was later captured in Oklahoma and was shot and killed by authorities there during an escape attempt.