In August 1919, EPS Const. William Nixon was shot while on patrol duty. Before his passing, Nixon identified his killer, a petty criminal named John Larson. Larson fled Edmonton and headed southwest for Mountain Park, a remote coal mining town near Jasper.
Edmonton Police Chief Hill knew speed was critical to catch up with Larson, and approached ace pilot Wilfred “Wop” May and his brother, who owned one of the world’s first barnstorming companies. On Sept. 1, 1919, EPS Det. James Campbell boarded May’s fragile Curtiss Jenny bi-plane, an aircraft made of wood and cloth, and took off in pursuit of Const. Nixon’s killer.
“It was a daring move on the part of the police,” says Legacy of Heroes writer Jeff Awid, with the Digital Media Unit. “Airplanes were relatively new, and as far as we know, had never been used in Canada to go after a criminal.”
The Legacy of Heroes comic is produced in-house, as part of an ongoing effort to share true stories of heroism and courage with the community.
“It’s an incredible story of bravery – where do you land a plane and refuel when airports haven’t been built yet?” adds Jared Robinson, the comic’s artist.
Eight thousand copies of the first Legacy of Heroes issue were distributed to schools in Edmonton and the surrounding area. Online, the comic was read more than a thousand times, accessed by people as far away as Hong Kong and Australia.
Officers taking part in Read-In Week, Oct. 6-10, 2014, will hand out copies of the comic to students at participating schools. Copies will also be distributed by the EPS School Resource Officer Unit and Recruiting Unit.