In the crisp autumn of 1976, the life of 29-year-old Martin S. Sowders, a White male, was tragically cut short in Vancouver, Washington. Sowders served as a deputy with the Clark County Sheriff's Office, a role he had held for seven years. On the morning of November 18, 1976, a robbery was reported at the Hazel Dell Hi School Pharmacy. The suspect, identified as Larry William Edwards, a convicted felon on parole, had fled with narcotics.
Deputies soon located Edwards' vehicle and
initiated a traffic stop at 78th Street and St. John's Road. As officers surrounded the car, Edwards refused to exit and was seen consuming pills. A struggle ensued when deputies attempted to forcibly remove him from the vehicle. In the ensuing chaos, a fellow deputy's firearm accidentally discharged. The bullet struck Deputy Sowders in the right temple. He was rushed to the hospital but succumbed to his injuries the following day, November 19, 1976.
The death of Deputy Sowders was not the result of a malicious act by a suspect but a tragic instance of friendly fire during a high-stress arrest. The man at the center of the incident, Larry William Edwards, was an escaped convict from the Washington State Penitentiary. While he was arrested for the robbery, there were no further arrests directly related to Deputy Sowders' death, as the shooting was determined to be an accident. Deputy Sowders was survived by his wife and son. In recognition of his service and sacrifice, the Clark County Operations Center was later renamed in his honor, located near the very street where he lost his life.
