Convicted murderer L. E. Mosley fatally shoots Officer Amos J. Comer on July 4, 1924.

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On July 4, 1924, L. E. Mosley (d. 1926), a convicted murderer, fatally shoots Seattle Police Officer Amos J. Comer (1879-1924). Mosley had been causing a disturbance and when Comer searched him for weapons, Mosley pulled a gun and fired. Comer died the next day.

L. E. Mosley was released from the Walla Walla Penitentiary in June 1924 after serving time for a murder conviction out of Pierce County. On July 4 he was in Seattle and caused a disturbance at the Business Man's Club located at 614 1/2 Jackson Street. He reportedly announced that he was going to "shoot the first guy that bothers me" (Victor, 107). Comer responded to the complaint and Mosley shot him. Comer died the next evening. Mosley was arrested on July 7. Mosley told the arresting officers, "Well, this is the end of a perfect day" (Victor, 108).

Mosley was convicted of Comer's murder and sentenced to death. He was hanged on February 19, 1926.

Sources:
Rae Anna Victor, Century of Honor: Excellence in Washington State Law Enforcement (Bloomington, IN: 1st Books, 2000), 107-108; Washington State Department of Corrections Website, (http://www.wa.gov/doc/ deathpnlty.htm); Michael D. Brasfield, "An Examination of the Historical and Biographical Material Pertaining to the Violent Deaths Involving Seattle Police Officers (1881-1980)," (Undergraduate thesis, University of Washington Library, 1980), 54.
Note: This essay was corrected on June 25, 2003, and again on July 22, 2010.

By David Wilma, May 18, 2002

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