Constable James Archibald, PC#128

Appointed April 17, 1912.  Fallen May 28th, 1913

When 26-year-old Scotland native Constable James Archibald joined the VPD in 1912, he would have been one of the first officers to use the many exciting tools new to policing at the time. A system of call boxes with a direct line to HQ now dotted the streets and kept patrol officers in constant contact with each other and the Station, making hourly reports while on their beat. Flashlights at this time given to officers were electric lights thought to be more dependable and stronger than the old gas powered torches. 

On the night of May 28th, 1913, Constable James Archibald set out with his flashlight to walk the beat along Powell St. where a string of commercial burglaries had recently reported. During the night, Archibald missed two of his hourly report calls, and when he failed to report in after his shift, his superior became worried. A search party set out the next morning and eventually found Constable Archibald’s body with two gunshot wounds in a vacant lot near Powell St.

Constable Archibald's murder was a widely publicized mystery in the City. Investigation of the crime scene revealed a black mask which was eventually traced back to two know thieves; Frank David and Herman Clark. After being interrogated, the two criminals confessed to the crime. They had been leaving a burglary of a nearby business when Constable Archibald approached them. As the officer searched Clark for a crowbar, David shot him.  

Clark and Davis received the death sentence and hung almost a year later in the provincial penitentiary located in New Westminster.