Detective John Thomas Hobbs, 43, was killed in March 2014 while serving on the Phoenix Police Department’s Fugitive Apprehension Team. A 21-year veteran, Hobbs and other detectives were attempting to serve a felony warrant on a man wanted in connection with a murder. The suspect fled in a vehicle, a pursuit ended in a crash at 43rd Avenue and Bethany Home Road, and the suspect then ran from the wreck and opened fire on the pursuing detectives.

In the exchange of gunfire that followed, Detective Hobbs and another detective were struck. Despite being mortally wounded, Hobbs returned fire and fatally shot the suspect, who was identified as William Thornton. Both injured detectives were taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital in critical condition; Hobbs later died there. Colleagues remember him as a leader and mentor who deeply loved his wife and three children.

Does anyone have memories of Hobbs or details about the incident that could add to the record?