Yuma County Sheriff’s Office Fallen Officer

 
Deputy Sheriff Walter Akers

Deputy Sheriff Walter Henry Akers

End of Watch: Wednesday, February 4, 1948
Tour of Duty: 3 years, 1 month

Gravesite: Desert Lawn Memorial Park - Garden of Desert Lawn, Section F, Lot 4, Space 3

 
 

Deputy Sheriff Walter Akers was shot at approximately 11:30 p.m. the night of Tuesday, February 3, 1948 when he responded to a call from Constable Jack Harold for help in arresting John Franklin, who had threatened to shoot a railroad conductor when he refused to let him board a train because he was drunk. Constable Harold knew the man well and knew that he could be dangerous so he called Deputy Akers for assistance.

Deputy Akers drove to the area near the Parker railroad station and as Constable Harold worked his way behind Franklin, he drove slowly toward him. When Deputy Akers got out of his car, Franklin fired one shot striking him in the head. Deputy Akers was rushed to the Parker Indian Agency hospital by Constable Harold and two other men, where he later died at 12:55 a.m.

Less than an hour after the shooting, Franklin was captured and arrested by Constable Harold and taken to the Indian Agency jail. Franklin was then transferred to the Yuma County jail early that morning (February 4th).

The Investigation
The investigation of the murder of Deputy Akers conducted in Parker on February 4th revealed that on the night of Tuesday, February 3, 1948, John Franklin, a 75-year-old Negro, had tried to board a Santa Fe passenger train at the Parker railroad station, but the Santa Fe railroad conductor, Charles V. Barton, refused to let him aboard because he was intoxicated. According to witnesses, Franklin went home, got a shotgun and returned to the railroad station about 10 minutes later in an effort to force his way onto the train. When Mr. Barton saw Franklin return with the shotgun, he quickly went up town to call the law. Constable Harold was on duty and telephoned Deputy Akers for assistance in making the arrest.

Sheriff Jack Beard stated that the investigation revealed that Franklin held an old grudge against Deputy Akers and Constable Harold. Franklin had recently completed a six month sentence in the Yuma County jail on assault charges, and returned to Parker upon his release.

On Thursday, February 5, 1948, the Yuma County Attorney’s Office issued a complaint in Justice Court and murder charges were filed charging John Franklin with the murder of Deputy Sheriff Walter Akers. Franklin waived a preliminary hearing in Justice Court. On Thursday, February 19, 1948, Franklin appeared before Superior Court Judge Henry C. Kelly for his arraignment. The arraignment was adjourned with the date and time for the defendant’s plea continued until 1:30 p.m. on February 25, 1948

The Trial
Franklin’s trial was held on Monday, March 29, 1948 in the Yuma County Superior Court. Franklin planned to present evidence in his trial that he was “insane or mentally defective” when he murdered Deputy Akers.

In a statement introduced into evidence by the prosecutor on Tuesday, March 30th, Franklin related the story of the shooting to Deputy County Attorney A. J. Eddy at the Yuma County jail on the morning following the shooting. Franklin freely admitted firing the shot that killed Deputy Akers and under questioning by Eddy, stated that he had wanted to kill him for a long time because Deputy Akers had caused him a lot of trouble. Franklin had been confined to the Yuma County jail for a six month sentence a short time before the shooting and he blamed Deputy Akers for having put him in jail.

During the trial, the Santa Fe railroad conductor, Mr. Barton, testified that Deputy Akers drove his car to a tamarisk tree (near the railroad station) where Franklin had taken refuge. He stated that Deputy Akers drove up slowly, keeping his spotlight on Franklin. When Deputy Akers stopped his car, he got out of his car and called out to Franklin and attempted to talk him into putting the shotgun down. Barton stated that it was then that Franklin raised the shotgun and fired at Deputy Akers from short range, striking him in the head behind the left ear.

During his testimony, Constable Harold stated that when Deputy Akers fell to the ground, Franklin calmly walked away, reloading his shotgun as he went.

Franklin took the witness stand in his own defense and admitted that he shot Deputy Akers, saying that the deputy had cause him a lot trouble and had threatened him.

The jury began deliberations the afternoon of March 30th, after hearing the testimony of eight witnesses called by the state and Franklin himself. Late afternoon on Wednesday, March 31st, after deliberating 22 hours, the jury returned a verdict of guilty and Judge Kelly sentenced Franklin to life imprisonment.

On Friday, April 2, 1948, John Franklin was taken to Florence, Arizona to begin his life sentence in the state penitentiary. On Tuesday, June 29, 1948, Franklin died in the State Prison hospital.

 

Deputy Walter Akers was hired by Yuma County Sheriff Jack Beard to be the deputy in Parker and the north portion of the county effective January 1, 1945. He had worked in law enforcement for ten years prior to joining the Sheriff’s Office, having served as a state highway patrolman and Yuma City police officer.

Deputy Akers, 36 years of age, was survived by his wife Lola and a son, Harley.

Following are the news articles used as resources regarding the shooting of Deputy Akers:

NOTE: In the process of researching the murder of Deputy Sheriff Walter Akers, I found conflicting information that I was unable to corroborate regarding the time of the shooting and the location where the shooting took place. The information above is pieced together from the newspaper articles listed and the Ancestary.com website.

 
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