Forgotten deputy slain in 1944 being honored

CINCINNATI - You could call it the ultimate detective work; tracking down a Hamilton County Special Deputy who had been all but forgotten since he was killed in the line of duty in 1944.

The only clues-two yellowed newspaper articles discovered in an old scrapbook, according to Sheriff's Dept. spokesman Steve Barnett. "Those articles discussed the death of Special Deputy...Elmer Pressley."

The scraps of paper were brought to the attention of the sheriff's department, which began digging through their records for someone nobody could remember.

Barnett says the records with Pressley's correct name were finally located. "Yes, Special Deputy Elmore David Pressley was age 41, was sent to the Valley Homes in what is now Lincoln Heights."

He confronted Clarence Griffin about making too much noise. Griffin responded by shooting Pressley in the stomach. Pressley died three days later.

His killer was shot to death by police in Gary, Ind. while resisting arrest.

But what became of Elmore Pressley?

Barnett began scouring area cemeteries. Eventually, he found Pressley's unmarked grave, overgrown with weeds at the Union Baptist Cemetery in Price Hill.

"It brought a tear to my eyes," Barnett says. "You're standing there looking at this, and you say, this man gave his life, made the ultimate sacrifice for his community, and this is the best he gets?"

The sheriff's department and members of the Greater Cincinnati Police Museum are making sure Pressley gets the recognition he's been denied for 66 years.

A new gravestone has been donated to his final resting place, and a special ceremony recognizing his valor will take place graveside, Wednesday, at 1 p.m.

The museum is still trying to gather more information about this forgotten hero.

They ask if anyone remembers Elmore David Pressley to contact Steve Kramer at 513-300-3664.