Suspects identified in 1937 murder case

In 1937 two Boone County law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty. Eighty years later two suspects in the murders have been identified.

According the Nebraska Attorney General's Office, Charles Orville Doody and Marion Armstrong Cooley were responsible for the murders of Boone County Sheriff Lawrence Smoyer and Boone County Constable William Wathen. They were shot June 17, 1937 in a field northwest of Albion while investigating a suspicious vehicle and trespassing complaint. Smoyer died instantly; Wathan survived for more than three months before dying 80 years ago today.

Doody and Cooley, who are both deceased, were "tied to the crime scene by numerous articles of evidence," according to a report from the Attorney General's Office, released at a news conference in Albion today. “Today brings clarity to these deaths and provides justice for these families,” Attorney General Doug Peterson said. “These men died in the line of duty and we honor the memory of their service.”

The Murders (from the Attorney General's Office report)

On Thursday, June 17, 1937 at approximately 8 a.m., Smoyer and Wathen were shot while investigating a suspicious vehicle and trespassing complaint reported several days in a row by a local rancher in a cattle pasture 25 miles northwest of the county seat of Albion. The officers were shot by two well-dressed men driving a black 1937 Ford Coupe with Colorado license plates. This vehicle had been stolen in Denver four days earlier and had been seen in the area of the pasture over the previous three days. Smoyer (shot once in the chest) died instantly. Wathen (shot once through both hips) survived for 108 days, finally succumbing to his wound on Sunday, Oct. 3, 1937.

The Victims (from the Attorney General's Office report)

Smoyer was born June 6, 1896 in Syracuse, Nebraska, and was 41-years-old when he died. He was elected Boone County Sheriff in 1926, and served 11 years before he was killed. Smoyer was married and had six children. He was a World War I veteran, serving with the 155th Army Infantry, Company H.

Wathan was born Aug. 15, 1883 in Millville, Iowa, and was 53-years-old when he died. He had been a Boone County Sheriff’s Deputy from 1925 to 1927, and became Boone County constable in 1927.

The Suspects (from the Attorney General's Office report)

• Both Cooley (who died in 1965) and Doody (who died in 1995) were named in a Colorado arrest warrant for the theft of the vehicle used in the commission of the crime.
• Both served two terms in the Colorado State Penitentiary System.
• Cooley and Doody collectively specialized in armed robbery, auto theft, business burglary, forgery and armed assault on officers.
• Cooley was independently identified by three eyewitness.
• At the time of the crime, Cooley was wanted for questioning in a successful kidnap-for-ransom scheme.
• At the time of the crime, Doody was wanted for armed bank robbery and escape from jail in Brighton, Colorado.

Linking the Suspects to the Crime (from the Attorney General's Office report)

Articles of evidence that tie Cooley and Doody to the crime:

• The car that the two shooters were driving was stolen from Denver, with license plates stolen from a Boulder mining company. Colorado was able to identify the thieves as Doody and Cooley. Wathen also recorded that he had shot the car multiple times. This car was eventually found in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with multiple gunshots.
• There were multiple sightings of the car and men matching Cooley's and Doody’s description in the Albion area. In addition, three eyewitnesses independently identified Cooley as one of the men in the car around the time of the crime.
• A plaster of Paris cast matched Cooley’s footprints to the scene of the crime. In addition, one of the eyewitnesses, as well as William Wathen, reported that one of the men was wearing black and white saddle shoes. When Cooley was apprehended in Cheyenne, Wyoming, his shoes were black and white saddle shoes dyed black.
• Wathen’s detailed account of the shooting, which he wrote down in his logbook at the scene after exchanging gunfire with the suspects, included descriptions of both shooters, the car’s description and license plate, and the circumstances of the shooting.

Why Cooley and Doody Weren't Arrested at the Time of the Crime

According to the Attorney General's Office, "Their identities were discovered by investigators within three days of the crimes but it would take just over a year to collect enough evidence to issue Marion Cooley an arrest warrant for first-degree murder. By this time, Cooley was serving his third term for armed robbery in Colorado and according to the laws at the time, Nebraska had to wait until he was paroled in 1948 before they could take him into custody. A warrant for Doody was not obtained by investigators because his whereabouts were unknown. The original investigation into these murders would have resulted in the prosecution of these suspects 80 years ago if it were not for numerous circumstances, including the interference of World War II."

“The original investigation of these crimes was outstanding,” Peterson said. “While world events slowed justice from immediately being carried out, today, our office as well as the Boone County and the Seward County Sheriffs' offices are grateful the facts can be revealed.”