Edward Tarkington

Edward Lovoyde Tarkington was a man who, from his earliest days, knew he wanted to be a police officer. His wife, Phyllis Tarkington Thompson, recalled that it was all he ever talked about. At 22 years old, the young Black officer had been with the Metro Nashville Police Department for just over a year, fulfilling his lifelong dream. He and Phyllis, who also worked for the department in central records, had been married for only four months when his dream, and their future together, came to a violent end.

On the afternoon of Sunday, December 17, 1978, Officer Tarkington was responding to a residential burglary call in North Nashville. Around 3 p.m., he was at the scene near the intersection of 12th Avenue North and Jo Johnston Avenue, speaking with the victim of the break-in. The routine investigation suddenly escalated when a neighbor of the victim, a man named Robert Wilson Jr., emerged and began arguing with Officer Tarkington. This was not their first encounter; Officer Tarkington had previously arrested Wilson twice for running illegal gambling operations.

The argument quickly turned deadly. Wilson produced a .45 caliber handgun and a gun battle erupted between the two men. A witness, Robert King, saw the shootout unfold. In the exchange of fire, Officer Tarkington was struck in the neck. Wilson was also wounded. Officer Tarkington was rushed to Baptist Hospital, but he died from his wound shortly after arriving. He was the second Metro Nashville officer to be fatally wounded that year.

In the aftermath, Metro officer Joe L. Perry was photographed at the scene, carefully collecting the weapon allegedly used to kill his fellow officer. Robert Wilson Jr. was arrested and subsequently charged with murder for the death of Officer Tarkington. The city and the police department mourned the loss of a dedicated public servant. The funeral was held four days later at the Pilgrim Emanuel Baptist Church. Fellow officers saluted as their fallen brother's body was carried from the church. At Greenwood Cemetery, Metro Mayor Richard Fulton and Police Chief Joe Casey stood by as Officer Tarkington was laid to rest. Heartbreaking photos captured his mother, Deloris Perkins, comforting his young widow, Phyllis, during the graveside service.

Despite being charged with murder, Robert Wilson Jr. was never convicted for killing Officer Tarkington. His only legal consequence from the fatal encounter was a one-year federal sentence for being a felon in possession of a firearm. This outcome left a lasting pain for the family and the law enforcement community.

Edward Tarkington was survived by his wife, his mother, and a brother who would later honor his memory by becoming an officer with the same department. For nearly five decades, his widow, Phyllis Tarkington Thompson, has faithfully attended the annual police memorial service to honor him. "I always try to be here, just to remember him," she said in a May 2026 interview. "It was heartbreaking, it was heartbreaking. Never realized that he would be gone so soon." She shared that in two years, they would have celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. The name of Officer Edward L. Tarkington remains on the list of Nashville's fallen heroes, a permanent reminder of a promising life of service cut tragically short.