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On This Day: Officer Faulkner found dead

Philadelphia officer David Faulkner was found dead 33 years ago today. Mumia Abu-Jamal, a local Black Panther and recently let-go journalist, was found severely wounded on the sidewalk near him.

The investigation found that Abu-Jamal happened to nearby and saw Officer Faulkner as he was about to handcuff Abu-Jamal’s brother, William Cook. Abu-Jamal approached Officer Faulkner from behind and intervened with force, pulling a gun on the 26 year old officer.  Abu-Jamal exchanged gunfire with Officer Faulkner. Both men sustained injuries. Abu-Jamal, still walking towards Officer Faulkner, stood over him as he lied bleeding on the sidewalk and fired four more shots at close range, killing him.

Faulkner had called for back up. Although the officers responded quickly, Faulkner was dead. Abu-Jamal was still at the scene holding the fired gun. Several witnesses identified Abu-Jamal as Faulkner’s murderer.

Faulkner left high school early to join the Army. During his time in the military, he earned his high school degree and an Associate’s Degree in Criminal Justice. After the military, he was a corrections officer for a brief time before joining the Philadelphia Police Department in 1975. A few years later, in 1979, he married Maureen.

Sources:
“Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v Mumia Abu-Jamal” Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Pennsylvania_v._Mumia_Abu-Jamal. Last accessed online 9 December 2014.

Danny Faulkner. http://danielfaulkner.com/. Last accessed online at 9 December 2014.

“The Danny Faulkner Story” Fraternal Order of Police. http://www.fop.net/causes/faulkner/danny.shtml. Last accessed online 9 December 2014.
 
Photo:
Dreamstime
 
On This Day is a prompt I started this month to further explore historical events. I will make every effort to keep events localized to that of my research or research I am conducting for others.
 
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Comments

  1. Diane Gould HallDecember 10, 2014 at 12:20 AM

    Thank you for this post Jeanne. As a retired police officer, married to a retired police officer, I appreciate you remembering Officer Faulkner.
    I also like the idea of the "On This Day" prompt.
    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Genealogical GemsDecember 10, 2014 at 6:46 AM

    Thanks Diane - for your nice comment and your and your husband's service. The Black Panthers are actually part of the reason my husband's family left Philadelphia. Dad was on the force and involved in a raid which ended in death threats on the entire family ... so the family story goes.

    ReplyDelete

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