Police Officer Robert L. Litsey

Robert L. Litsey

Police Officer Robert Litsey was shot and killed after responding to a report of loitering on a staircase at 7th Avenue and Pine Street. When Officer Litsey called for the suspects to come down the stairs, one of the men opened fire, killing him.

Three men were arrested and charged with murder. One was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 19 years. He was paroled in 1930. Another was convicted of murder. He died in prison from tuberculosis on March 14, 1929. The last suspect was convicted of murder and sentenced to life. On September 15, 1925, he escaped from the city jail. Several days later he was captured in San Francisco after he committed an armed robbery. He spent 13 years in Folsom Prison and was returned to Walla Walla Penitentiary in 1938. In 1943 his sentence was reduced to 19 years making him eligible for parole.

Officer Litsey had served with the Seattle Police Department for 22 years and was survived by his wife, two sons, and a daughter.