Chief of Police William E. Swartz

William E. Swartz

Chief of Police William Swartz succumbed to a gunshot wound sustained four days earlier while attempting to question a drunk man.

The man was known to Chief Swartz to have just purchased a revolver and to always being drunk on payday. The chief was keeping an eye on the man who approached him near the intersection of Bank Street and North Street. The man made several statements to Chief Swartz before pulling out his revolver and shooting him.

The man fled the scene on a freight train but was later apprehended. He was convicted of Chief Swartz's murder and eventually died in prison.

Chief Swartz had served with the Lehighton Borough Police Department for four years. He was survived by his wife and eight children.