On the morning of August 7, 1978, at 5:40 a.m., Officer Carl I. Levin of the Harker Heights Police Department was investigating a suspicious person subsequent to an arson investigation.  Officer Levin contacted the suspect in the vicinity of North Amy Lane and East Valley Road and as he stepped from his patrol vehicle, the man fired a .25 caliber pistol point blank into Officer Levin’s left temple.

Officer Levin was found dead minutes later next to a curb with his duty weapon still holstered.   

On August 11, 1978, Law Enforcement Officers from across the State paid homage to their fallen brother who was laid to rest in a flag draped coffin with full police honors. After an intense man hunt, the suspect was arrested and charged with Capital Murder.  He was executed for his crime in 1984. 

Today, Officer Levin’s name can be found etched on the hallowed walls of both the National Law Enforcement Memorial in Washington D.C. and the Texas Peace Officers Memorial in Austin. His name is honored among the thousands of Police Officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice to their Community, State and Nation.