On this day, Sept. 20, in 1974, District of Columbia police officer Gail A. Cobb was murdered during a bank robbery in downtown Washington.
Cobb is believed to be the first female patrol officer in the United States to be shot and killed in the line of duty.
Cobb, 24, received a report that gunmen had robbed a bank at 1170 21st St. NW.
Cobb followed a suspect into a garage and ordered him to place his hands on the wall. As she radioed for help, the suspect spun and fired a single shot. The bullet went through her wrist and her police radio, and then into her heart.
