Full Name

Rodney Scott Morgan

End of Watch

02/26/1974

On Tuesday, February 26, 1974, just after midnight, Detective “Scotty” Morgan and his partner, a Houston Police Department narcotics officer, entered a bar in the 4500 block of Telephone Road. The two were working a narcotics case and were checking the location for individuals involved in the investigation. Both officers were acting in an undercover capacity. The manager of the club recognized Detective Morgan from a previous incident. Detective Morgan told the manager that he had gotten out of law enforcement and was now a “biker”. After this conversation, Scotty left his partner and went to the rest room. After several minutes had passed, his partner went to the men’s room to check on him. As he approached, he noticed two outlaw bikers standing outside the rest room door and was advised by them that the rest room was full. His partner forced his way into the rest room where he found two more outlaw bikers assaulting Detective Morgan. One had a knife to Scotty’s stomach and the other was cutting his throat with a knife. The HPD officer fired a shot, not hitting anyone and both suspects were taken under control. A short time later, a two man HPD patrol unit entered the bar responding to a shots fired disturbance. After being directed to the restroom, the lead HPD officer attempted to open the door. Scotty and his partner, believing that other outlaw bikers were entering the rest room, pushed the door closed. The HPD uniformed officer forced the door yelling “Police” and at the same time Detective Morgan turned toward the door also yelling “Police.” Due to the small size of the rest room, the HPD uniformed officer and Scotty were almost face-to-face when the uniformed officer stepped in. Thinking he was about to be shot, and not hearing Detective Morgan’s shout, the uniformed officer jumped back and fired once striking Detective Morgan in the chest, killing him instantly. The two men who were assaulting Detective Morgan were arrested and charged with Attempted Murder. Detective Scotty Morgan was 27 years old and the 12th deputy to die in the line of duty.