King Charles Brown, Officer

Lawton Police Department

Brown, 48, had been with the Lawton Police Department about one and a half years when on the morning of January 20, 1946, his revolver accidentally discharged while he was putting it in his holster. The bullet went through the lower part of his stomach. He died in the hospital the next morning. Brown was survived by his wife and daughter.

J William "Will" Hays , Patrolman

Lawton Police Department

About 5 P.M. on Saturday, April 8, 1916, Officer Hays and Captain Hale Landis responded to a call of a man being harassed because he helped Officer Hays earlier with an arrest. As the officers arrived, Carl Dudley, the man doing the harassing, saw the officers and ran into Ray’s Restaurant. As the officers approached Dudley fired at them hitting Hays. Captain Landis and a citizen, whom had picked up Officer Hays’ gun, returned fire, wounding Dudley in the shoulder, Dudley escaped but was captured soon afterwards. Officer Hays died at 4 A.M. the next morning, April 9th leaving a wife and son. At 10:45 P. M. that night a mob of 150 to 200 men overpowered the guards broke Dudley out of the Comanche County Jail and lynched him from a telephone pole.

Victor Robert Lee, Patrolman

Lawton Police Department

Patrolman Lee, 47, had only been an officer four days when on Saturday, May 31, 1947, he was notified that Joshua Browning, 62, had been brandishing a gun on Dearborn Street in “the Negro District”. Officer Lee located Browning setting in a booth in the Gay Paree Café at 101 Dearborn. When the officer asked Browning if he had a gun he replied that he wasn’t bothering anyone. Officer Lee drew his gun and pointed it at Browning. Browning drew a .380 automatic pistol and the two men exchanged gunfire. Browning was hit once in the left chest by a shot from Lee’s .44 revolver but a roll of nickels in his pocket saved his life. Officer Lee was struck four times in the abdomen and died about 10:30 A.M. the next morning, Sunday, June 1st. It is reported that the two black men rode in the same car to the hospital and walked in together. Officer Lee was the first black Lawton Police Officer to die in the line of duty and was survived by his wife and a daughter.