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Patch image: San Francisco Police Department, California






Officer Lester Dorman
San Francisco Police Department
California

End of Watch: Sunday, December 5, 1920

Biographical Info
Age: Not available
Tour of Duty: 6 years
Badge Number: Not available

Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Sunday, December 5, 1920
Weapon Used: Handgun; Revolver
Suspect Info: Hung by and angry mob

Officer Dorman, Sergeant Miles Jackson and Sheriff James Petray of the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department were shot and killed as they attempted to arrest four suspects in their home. The suspects had brutally attacked a group of girls in San Francisco and had been tracked to Santa Rosa. The three officers entered the home of the suspects to arrest them. One suspect was sitting on a couch, one was sitting in the corner of the same room and the other two were in the bathroom.

As the officer were placing the first two suspects under arrest the suspect sitting on the couch jumped with a revolver and shot Officer Dorman and Sheriff Petray dead. Sergeant Jackson, who was in another room rushed to the shots, but he too was shot and killed. Before he fell dead, Sergeant Jackson was able to shoot and wound one suspect.

All four suspects were arrested later in the day and brought to the local jail. An angry group of men demanded the killers be turned over to them to be hanged. After a standoff the mob finally prevailed and the suspects were dragged from their cells and hung.

Officer Dorman had been with the agency for six years.

Related Line of Duty Deaths
Patch image: San Francisco Police Department, CaliforniaDetective Sergeant Miles M. Jackson
San Francisco Police Department, CA
EOW: Sunday, December 5, 1920
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Patch image: San Francisco Police Department, CaliforniaSheriff James A. Petray
Sonoma County Sheriff's Department, CA
EOW: Sunday, December 5, 1920
Cause of Death: Gunfire

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