In the early hours of a new year, the life of Patrolman William A. Patterson, a 39-year-old male, was tragically cut short in Gadsden, Alabama. On January 1, 1912, a man that Patterson had arrested earlier in the day for public intoxication carried out a fatal act of vengeance. Having been with the police force for only two months, Patterson was survived by his wife and five children.
The day had started with a routine arrest, but the suspect, upon his release from jail, made a chilling
vow to end the life of the officer who had detained him. True to his word, the man, who was ironically the son of one of Patterson's fellow officers, sought out and confronted the patrolman. In a brazen act of violence, the suspect shot and killed Patrolman Patterson.
The wheels of justice began to turn swiftly. The suspect was apprehended and, on March 29, 1912, was convicted of first-degree murder and handed a death sentence. However, the legal battle was far from over. The Alabama Supreme Court granted the convicted man a new trial, which again resulted in a death sentence. This cycle of conviction and appeal leading to the same grim verdict repeated itself through a third trial.
A fourth trial was on the horizon, but fate intervened before it could commence. On December 14, 1913, the man who had murdered Patrolman William A. Patterson died in the Gadsden County Jail, bringing a somber end to a prolonged and painful legal process for all involved. The community was left to mourn the loss of a dedicated officer, a husband, and a father, whose commitment to his duty cost him his life.
