At approximately 3:15 a.m. on the 11th of March, 1893, as Special Officer William G. Cashin and regular Officer George Joseph Ely were making their rounds, they paused on the south side of 7th Street between Chester and Center. Officer Ely recalled the night as a “fearful” one. Rain fell incessantly and the “roar of thunder” added to the glamour of the time.

During a lull in the thunder, the officers heard a “dull thud.” As they looked around, Officer Cashin believed he saw a flicker of light coming from the interior of Kuhnie’s Saloon at 1466 7th St. They went to investigate, and discovered that the saloon doors were open. Before entering the saloon, which was now completely dark, Officer Ely lit the candle that he carried in his pocket. Stepping through the doorway, both officers drew their pistols.

When their eyes grew accustomed to the dark, the officers saw a figure crouched in a far corner of the main room. As they turned toward it, a shot rang out. Both officers returned fire with their weapons. The crouching figure jumped up and ran for the door, followed by Officer Ely, who fired one more shot at the escaping figure as it crossed 7th Street.

Officer Cashin called out to Ely that he had been shot. Ely abandoned his pursuit of the suspect and returned to Cashin, whom he found clutching his abdomen. The two officers walked three blocks to a doctor’s residence. While Cashin was being attended to, Ely made his notifications.

When Officer Ely returned to the scene of the shooting, he discovered evidence that a second suspect had been on the premises and made good his escape. Near a broken window Officer Ely found a pistol and burglary tools. Following the path of the fleeing suspect that he had shot at, Ely found the suspect lying on the train tracks, dead. During the subsequent investigation, evidence of several more burglaries was discovered. The suspects had rifled cash registers and safes.

The second suspect was apprehended in San Francisco a few days later. He had quite a lengthy history of burglaries, robberies and other crimes. He and his dead accomplice cut a swath of crime throughout Northern California.

As serious as his wound was, Officer Cashin’s strong constitution gave hope to his family, friends, and doctors that he would survive. He rallied several times, only to fall into deep bouts of delirium and pain. Finally, at 2:15 a.m., March 12, 1893, Officer Cashin succumbed to his injury. He was born in County Kilkenny, Ireland, in 1837, and became an Oakland Special Police Officer in 1885. He was survived by his wife and four children who were at his bedside at the time of his death.

On July 5, 1889, Deputy John Nicholas Wren was killed while attempting to serve an arrest warrant. The subject listed on the arrest warrant was Charles Reavis. He was wanted for disturbing the peace by using vulgar, profane, and abusive language against his estranged wife while in the presence of others. Annie Reavis had contacted the District Attorney with the aforementioned incident and he issued the warrant, then gave it to Deputy Wren for immediate service.

Approximately two miles east of Visalia, while enroute back to Visalia from the Cottage Neighborhood (now known as the Cottage P.O. area), Deputy Wren confronted the suspect. Charles Reavis made a furtive movement. Deputy Wren pointed his handgun and fired, striking the suspect’s horse. Charles Reavis returned fire. The suspect’s bullet entered the top of the deputy’s head. The deputy fell to the ground dead. A reward of $200 was offered for the arrest of Charles Reavis.

The suspect was eventually found by Sheriff’s Posse members, led by Deputy Sheriff White, approximately two miles north of Visalia on Sunday, July 7, 1889. He was subsequently shot by one of the pursuers, S.N. Ellis.

Deputy Sheriff J.N. Wren left behind a wife, Amanda, and three children, John, Louis, and Winifred.

On July 4, 1889, at 1 a.m., City Marshal Charlie Wilson and his brother Deputy Marshal Keno Wilson were on patrol when they heard gunshots near a downtown hotel. As they approached to investigate, they saw John Murray on horseback holding a kerosene lamp taken from one of the streetlights. As Charlie Wilson grabbed Murray’s horse by the bridle, the outlaw drew his gun and shot him through the heart. The Marshal was dead before he hit the ground. Keno Wilson managed to pull his gun and fire three shots at Murray as he fled into the night. Several hours later a group of armed citizens captured the uninjured killer near the Mission San Luis Rey. Murray was eventually tried but his conviction was overturned on appeal. At his retrial Murray was re-convicted but the ordered death sentence never was carried out. On April 14, 1892, he died in county jail, his scheduled hanging still a few weeks away.

Regarding the murder of Albert P. Crigler, Constable of the Cloverdale Township, Sonoma County, California on April 28,1888, who was shot and killed while in the performance of his duties while attempting to arrest suspected stage coach robbers.

On Saturday, April 28,1888, at about 1:30 p.m., two masked men held up the Lakeport stage and removed the Wells, Fargo & Co.’s box. Constable Crigler was notified of the robbery, and he and Sam Allen of Cloverdale started after the robbers. Crigler and Allen found the trail of the robbers and tracked them to a wooded area off the Geyser Spring Road.

Sam Allen, in sworn testimony, described the encounter with the robbers. Allen said, ‘ In Cloverdale Township, Sonoma County, on April 28,1888, at about 5:30 p.m., at a location 200 yards west of the Toll House on Geyser Spring Road, Crigler and I found the suspected robbers sitting under a tree. Crigler called to them to surrender, they refused and broke and ran into a small ravine. Crigler and I pursued them and when we caught up with them, they began to shoot at us. Crigler and I were side by side when Crigler was killed by the first shot fired. The robbers continued to shoot at me and I returned fire, shooting twice. I was about ten feet from them when I fired, I don’t know if I hit anyone. The robbers were armed with six-shooters and a musket; they did not use the musket. I do not know where they went after the shooting stopped.’

Constable Albert P. Crigler, 33, was a native of Missouri. He was appointed by the Board of Supervisors of Sonoma County on April 7,1885, to be the Constable of the Cloverdale Township. Constable Crigler was administered the oath of his office on April 13,1885, by D.B.Morgan, Justice of the Peace.