Law Enforcement Officer, Convicted Murderer. Charles Becker, a New York City policeman, is known, according to a 21st-century article in the "New York Times," as "the only police officer executed for crimes connected to his official performance." He was arrested, tried, and found guilty of first-degree murder. He was convicted of ordering the murder of a small-time Manhattan bookmaker and gambler named Herman Rosenthal. Dying four days after his 45th birthday, he was executed by the electric chair at Sing-Sing Prison in New York. Four other men, who were organized crime figures, were involved with the murder and all were executed. Born the son of German immigrants, he arrived in New York City in 1890 at the age of 20, joining the New York City Police Department three years later. He first came to public notice in 1896, when he arrested a known prostitute named Ruby Young, who was in the company of Stephen Crane, the well-known author of the "Red Badge of Courage." In court, Crane refuted Officer Becker's charges, which led to the defendant being released. Three weeks later Young filed charges against Becker, but with the support of other officers, he was acquitted. From 1902 thru 1903 Officer Becker was the Leader of the Patrolman's Reform Movement, which was attempting to reduce the number of hours an officer was forced to work. In 1906 he worked a special unit, second in command, probing corruption, including that of Police Inspector Max Schmittberger. In 1911 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant by Police Commissioner Rhinelander Waldo and was assigned as head of one of the city's three anti-vice squads. Using his professional position, Becker started extorting large sums of money, up to $100,000, from Manhattan brothels and gambling houses in immunity from any police action. After taking his share, the money was passed to other higher-ranking police officers and politicians of the Tammany Hall political machine. After an encounter with Rosenthal and damaging his casino, Becker's name was mentioned in the newspaper "New York World" as one of three senior police officials involved in extorting money from Rosenthal's casinos." The source of the information was Rosenthal. Two days after the story was published in the newspaper, Rosenthal was murdered at 2 AM, hours before testifying to a grand jury. Witnesses recognized organized crime figures as being the actual murderers. At that point, the Manhattan District Attorney Charles S. Whitman accused Becker of ordering the murder, and with the public outcry, Becker was reassigned to desk duty although he proclaimed his innocence. Following an investigation, Becker was arrested on July 29, 1912, and within months in October was tried and convicted of first-degree murder. After making an appeal, his verdict was overturned on the grounds that the presiding judge had been biased and that there was no independent corroborating witness to testify to the events since all of them had been involved in the crimes. The organized crime figures had testified that they were hired as hitmen for the murder of Rosenthal. At the second trial in May of 1914, Becker was convicted again and sentenced to death. All four of the organized crime figures had been executed in 1914. New York Governor Charles S. Whitman had refused to grant Becker a pardon. Consequently, he was executed on July 30, 1915. For a hundred years, the Becker-Rosenthal murder case has been scrutinized with detailed reports with various opinions of Becker being guilty or not guilty. He married three times: His first wife died of tuberculous eight months after their marriage. With his second wife, he had a son Howard Paul Becker, who became a Professor of Sociology at the University of Wisconsin. His son's childhood was in the West with his mother and stepfather, Paul Becker. With his third wife, a school teacher, a daughter was conceived shortly before his arrest and died in 1913 shortly after birth. His mother died the same year. Soon after the second trial and the execution, his older brother John retired from the New York City police force in 1916. Becker was buried next to his daughter.