Muskogee County Sheriff's Office, Oklahoma
End of Watch: Monday, June 16, 1924
Age: 49
Tour of Duty: 12 years
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: June 16, 1924
Weapon Used: Officer's handgun
Suspect Info: One executed
Deputy Joseph Morgan was shot and killed in Tarrant County, Texas, while he and his partner transported two prisoners back to Muskogee, Oklahoma. The deputies had gone to Texas by train to pick up the two prisoners and the sheriff's department car, which the two had stolen.
The two suspects were placed in the back of the vehicle and during the trip back, one of them leaned over the seat and grabbed Deputy Morgan's gun out of it's holster. As Deputy Morgan turned and began to resist, the suspect shot him in the head. The suspect then held the other deputy at gunpoint and forced him to drive to a secluded location where Deputy Morgan's body was dumped in a ditch. The two suspects then handcuffed the other deputy to a tree. After robbing the surviving deputy and Deputy Morgan's body, the suspects fled the scene.
The suspects would later go on to kill Officer Charles Wilson of the Livingston, Montana Police Department on August 20, 1924, and Officer Haze Burch of the Phoenix, Arizona Police Department on February 5, 1925.
One of the suspects was convicted in Arizona of murdering Officer Burch and hanged on January 8, 1926. The remaining suspect, who was actually the brother of the hanged suspect, was convicted in Texas of the murder of Deputy Morgan and was sentenced to life in prison.
Deputy Morgan had been in law enforcement for 12 years and had served with the Muskogee, Oklahoma Police Department, and Houston, Texas Police Department. He was survived by his wife, daughter, and two sons. He is buried in Muskogee, Oklahoma.