Sheriff Edmund McMartin and City Marshal William Kelley, of the Oxnard Police Department, were shot and killed while attempting to arrest a man wanted for murder.

Sheriff McMartin had received information the man was at a home at the intersection of Winnetka Avenue and Sherman Way in Los Angeles. The two officers went to the home and spoke to the owner, who informed them the wanted man and an accomplice were staying in a shack in the backyard. When the suspect opened the door he recognized the officers and opened fire with a pistol, fatally wounding both.

The man fled but committed suicide a short time later as officers surrounded him.

Marshal Kelley had served in law enforcement for 44 years. He had previously served as sheriff of Dakota County, Nebraska, and as the United States Marshal for Nebraska. He was appointed Oxnard’s first city marshal in 1898 and also held commissions as a constable and sheriff’s deputy.

Sheriff McMartin had served with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office for over 19 years. He was survived by his wife and daughter.