On a cold December day in 1972, the city of Alexandria, Virginia, lost a dedicated public servant. Conrad Lee Birney, a 40-year-old white male, had spent 17 years with the Alexandria Police Department, rising to the rank of detective. On December 27th, while in plain clothes, he responded to a bank alarm at the Seminary Shopping Plaza.
As Detective Birney arrived at the scene, three men were attempting to flee the bank. In a sudden and violent confrontation, he was shot and killed. The suspects managed to escape, leaving behind a community in mourning and a family, including a wife and three children, to grapple with the devastating loss.
The investigation that followed was swift and decisive. Law enforcement quickly identified three suspects from Washington, D.C. These men, Mack Holland, 23, Ralph Walker, 24, and Percy Floyd, were later indicted for Detective Birney's murder on May 22, 1973. Each was convicted of first-degree murder in addition to federal bank robbery charges. Holland, a prison escapee, was sentenced to life in prison. Floyd, who had escaped from Lorton, received a 50-year sentence, and Walker was sentenced to 40 years in prison, ensuring that the men responsible for the death of Detective Birney were held accountable for their actions.
