In the summer of 1921, Yavapai County Undersheriff Edward Frank Bowers, a male, responded to a call on Summit Avenue in Prescott, Arizona. Reports had come in about a man who had been drinking and was discharging a rifle inside his house. Bowers, accompanied by a special deputy, went to the residence to investigate the disturbance.
Upon their arrival, the two lawmen separated, with Bowers approaching the front of the house while the deputy went to the rear.
Unbeknownst to the officers, the suspect was lying in wait, concealed behind a drapery inside the home. As Undersheriff Bowers entered the residence, the man fired a single, fatal shot that struck him in the chest. Though gravely wounded, Bowers managed to stumble out of the house before collapsing and dying about 75 yards away.
The special deputy witnessed the shooting and immediately returned fire, striking the suspect twice in the leg. The shooter was then taken into custody. Following the death of Undersheriff Bowers, the suspect was convicted of murder and received a life sentence in prison. However, he was paroled on November 25, 1928. His freedom was short-lived, as he was arrested again in March 1929 in Los Angeles, California, for attempted murder and a parole violation. He was subsequently returned to the Arizona Penitentiary to serve the remainder of his life sentence. Undersheriff Bowers was survived by his wife and four children.
