The Salt Lake City Police Department today remembers the loss of one its own: Officer David H. Crowther, killed in the line of duty October 12, 1923.Officer Crowther was shot to death by a transient. A search was launched when he failed to return home from patrol the previous night. At 10:00 a.m., the body of the 45-year-old victim was found on a bank of the Jordan River, three blocks from his home. He had been shot once in the head with a .32-caliber pistol. The officer’s vehicle, handgun and watch were missing.
On October 16, 1923, three men driving Officer Crowther’s bloodstained vehicle were arrested in Ludlow, California. The men were extradited to Utah, charged, tried, and found guilty of robbery and murder. Two of the men were eventually paroled. The suspect who shot Officer Crowther was executed at Utah State Prison in 1926.
At the time of his death, Officer Crowther was married and the father of three children. He is buried in Salt Lake City Cemetery. His nephew, Leonard C. Crowther, would rise through the ranks to become Police Chief.
If you have memories or photos of Officer Crowther to share, please email policehistory@slcgov.com or call (801) 799-3340. To learn more about our Fallen Officers, please visit http://www.slcpd.com/. Click on “Honoring Our Own.”
The Police Department wishes to thank the Utah Law Enforcement Memorial for its assistance in this remembrance.
