In the early morning hours of February 25, 1910, a lone gunshot shattered the winter quiet in Oklahoma City. Morris R. Reagan, a 49-year-old police officer, was found shortly after, lying face down on North Broadway with a fatal gunshot wound to his forehead. At the time of his death, he had only been with the Oklahoma City Police Department for three months.
A native of Texas, Officer Reagan was a seasoned lawman, having previously served as the town marshal in Duncan, Oklahoma, before
moving to the state's capital. He came from a respected Southern family; his father was a retired lawyer and magistrate, and his brother had also been a police officer before joining the fire department. Reagan was a husband and a father to two young children.
The investigation into his murder led to the arrest of a man named Will Martin. A witness claimed the man who killed Officer Reagan wore a white scarf, and Martin was wearing one when he was brought into custody. Despite being booked for murder, Martin maintained his innocence and was eventually released. To this day, the murder of Officer Morris R. Reagan remains officially unsolved, and the person responsible was never brought to justice.
