In the fall of 1994, a tragic event unfolded within the very walls meant to uphold the law in Washington, D.C., forever marking a dark day for the city's law enforcement community. On November 22nd, Henry Joseph 'Hank' Daly, a 51-year-old male Detective Sergeant with the Metropolitan Police Department, was killed in a brazen shooting inside police headquarters.
A veteran of 28 years on the force, Daly was known as a tenacious and respected investigator, a man who colleagues described as cool under pressure.
The day of the incident began like any other for Sergeant Daly, who was working in the third-floor office of the Cold Case Squad. The unexpected eruption of violence shattered the routine of the workday. A 25-year-old man named Bennie Lee Lawson entered the building and made his way to the detectives' offices, armed with a compact assault weapon. Without warning, Lawson opened fire, striking and killing Sergeant Daly. The gunman then continued his assault, fatally shooting two FBI agents, Martha Dixon Martinez and Michael John Miller, who were also in the office. Another FBI agent was seriously wounded in the attack.
The motive behind Lawson's deadly rampage was rooted in a previous triple homicide investigation. Lawson had been a suspect in that case and, although he was eventually cleared, he was reportedly labeled a 'snitch' by members of his gang. In an effort to regain his standing and prove his loyalty, he planned an attack on law enforcement. Tragically, it was later revealed that Lawson had intended to target the Homicide Squad office and had entered the Cold Case Squad office by mistake.
In the chaotic aftermath of the shooting, Lawson was wounded when one of the agents returned fire. However, he was not apprehended by law enforcement. Instead, he took his own life, using an agent's weapon to end the deadly siege. The investigation that followed traced the assault weapon used by Lawson to a man in Kentucky who was illegally selling firearms to criminals; that individual was later sentenced to 15 years in federal prison. In the wake of the tragedy, nine of Lawson's alleged associates from the First and Kennedy Street Crew were arrested on drug and gun offenses as authorities sought to understand the full scope of the plot and whether Lawson had acted alone.
