East St. Louis Police Department, Illinois
End of Watch: Sunday, July 1, 1917
Biographical Info
Age: Not available
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Sunday, July 1, 1917
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: Not available
Detective Wadley and Detective Sergeant Samuel Coopedge were shot and killed during a massive race riot. Earlier in the day a car occupied by white males had driven through a black area of the city and fired several shots randomly into a group of citizens.
An hour later the detectives were driving through the same area and were mistaken for the original suspects. Several citizens opened fire on their car, killing both detectives.
The shootings sparked a massive race riot in the city.
From the ODMP
See also: Samuel Coopedge
