New York City Police Department, New York
End of Watch: Monday, January 31, 1927
Age: 31
Tour of Duty: 5 years
Badge Number: 10669
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: January 31, 1927
Weapon Used: Handgun
Suspect Info: Executed in 1928
Patrolman James Masterson was shot and killed when he interrupted a robbery in progress.
Patrolman Masterson had been meeting with an informant at a restaurant on West 103rd Street in Manhattan. As he was leaving, two suspects attempted to rob the restaurant. Patrolman Masterson went back inside and was shot. He was transported to Knickerbocker Hospital where he succumbed to his wounds.
The suspects fled to upstate New York, where they engaged officers in a shootout on February 8, 1928. One of the suspects was shot and killed, and the second, who possessed Patrolman Masterson's revolver and shield, was arrested. That suspect was executed in the electric chair at Sing Sing Prison on December 16, 1928.
Patrolman Masterson had served with the New York City Police Department for five years and was assigned to the Detective Division. His mother survived him.
Patrolman Masterson was posthumously awarded the Department's Medal of Honor.