In the early morning hours of a cold January day in 1922, a seemingly routine encounter on the streets of Okmulgee, Oklahoma, spiraled into a violent shootout that would claim the life of a dedicated law enforcement officer. Captain Homer R. Spaulding, a 45-year-old male veteran of the Okmulgee Police Department, was fatally wounded in the line of duty. He had served the department for nine years.
The incident unfolded at 3:30 a.m.
when Captain Spaulding and two other officers stopped to assist a group of six men who appeared to be having trouble with their stalled vehicle. Without warning, two of the men brandished handguns and opened fire on the unsuspecting officers. In the ensuing gun battle, Captain Spaulding was mortally wounded, and another officer sustained injuries. One of the suspects was also shot and killed during the exchange. The perpetrators were later identified as members of the infamous Barker-Karpis Gang, a notorious group of outlaws who terrorized the American Midwest during the 1920s and 1930s.
Following the shooting, Captain Spaulding was rushed to the Okmulgee Hospital. Despite initial reports that he was in stable condition after surgery, he later took a turn for the worse due to internal bleeding. After bravely clinging to life for ten days, Captain Homer Spaulding succumbed to his gunshot wounds on January 9, 1922, while undergoing a second emergency operation. He was survived by his wife, Edith, and their son, George.
In the aftermath of the deadly shootout, authorities launched an investigation that led to the arrest of four men for their involvement in Captain Spaulding's murder. One of the suspects, Ed Lansing, was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death, though his sentence was later commuted to life in prison on appeal. Another man, Frank Hadley, was initially sentenced to twenty-five years but had his conviction overturned on appeal and was set free. Two other members of the gang, Volney Davis and 'Doc' Barker, were convicted for the murder of a different individual and received life sentences. The bandit killed at the scene was identified as Jimmy Sexton.
