Tommy L. Thedford was a 37-year-old Black/African American officer on the Bessemer Police Department with 12 years’ service when he was killed on October 1, 1981. Officer Thedford was on a stakeout at 31st Street and Dartmouth Avenue, assisting two women recovering stolen jewelry, when he confronted a burglary suspect. The man walked away, then turned, produced a handgun and shot Thedford in the head. The officer was taken to Lloyd Noland Hospital and died there at 5:18 p.m. He was survived by his wife and four children.

The shooter was identified as Ed Harrell, Jr., a convicted felon with prior arrests for burglary and a recent early release after serving part of a sentence for second-degree murder. Harrell was arrested and charged with capital murder for killing an on-duty officer. He initially claimed the shooting was accidental and entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity, later changing it to not guilty after a psychiatric evaluation found no basis for that defense.

A jury found Harrell guilty of the capital offense and recommended life without parole by an 11 to 1 vote; the trial judge overruled that recommendation and sentenced Harrell to death by electrocution after reviewing the evidence and a pre-sentencing report. The Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals later affirmed the conviction and sentence. Is there anyone who knew Officer Thedford or the circumstances at 31st Street and Dartmouth Avenue who can add details about that night?