Roanoke City Police Department, Virginia
End of Watch Thursday, November 20, 1930
Add to My HeroesGeorge Pettit Thomas
Patrolman Thomas succumbed to gunshot wounds received 11 days earlier when he encountered a drunk man on Norfolk Avenue. When he instructed the man to go home the suspect produced a handgun and shot Patrolman Thomas, critically wounding him. Patrolman Thomas, shot in the abdomen, was improving well in the hospital and his condition was upgraded from critical to good. Eleven days after he was shot, he was in good spirits, and the pain was almost gone when he suddenly died.
After the shooting, the suspect was apprehended three days later hiding a vacant building not far from the scene of the shooting. He was convicted of murder and sentenced to several years. On October 28, 1946, he died from tuberculosis at the state prison farm in Goochland County Virginia.
Patrolman Thomas was survived by his wife.
Bio
- Age 35
- Tour 2 years
- Badge Not available
Incident Details
- Cause Gunfire
- Incident Date Sunday, November 9, 1930
- Weapon Handgun; .45 caliber
- Offender Died in prison
Most Recent Reflection
View all 3 ReflectionsYour heroism and service is honored today, the eighty-first anniversary of your death. Your memory lives and you continue to inspire. Thank you for your service. My cherished son Larry Lasater was a fellow police officer murdered in the line of duty on April 24, 2005 while serving as a Pittsburg, CA police officer.
Rest In Peace
Phyllis Loya
mother of fallen officer Larry Lasater, PPD, eow 4/24/05
November 20, 2011
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