Cooke County Sheriff's Department, Texas
End of Watch: Monday, December 5, 1927
Age: 40
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: December 4, 1927
Weapon Used: Officer's handgun
Suspect Info: Pardoned in 1944
On Sunday morning, December 4, 1927, at approximately 3:00 a.m., Cooke County Sheriff's Deputies Jake Wright, William W. Emerson, and a complainant - Mr. Autrey - went to a farm where Dave T. Wilson was living. The deputies had a search warrant for stolen chickens and turkeys. The stolen birds were located on Wilson's farm. Wilson became enraged when he saw Autrey and grabbed Deputy Emerson's pistol and shot the deputy. Deputy Emerson died from his wounds at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, December 5, 1927.
Dave T. Wilson was convicted and sentenced to life in prison for murdering Emerson, 8 years for assault with intent to murder Wright, and one year for various theft charges. He was pardoned February 9, 1944.
Deputy Sheriff William W. Emerson was survived by his bride of four months, his mother, and several brothers and sisters. He is buried in the Fairview Cemetery, Block 21, Lot 116, in Gainesville in Cooke County.