(LAW.) National Surety Medal for Valor issued to Black N.Y.P.D. patrolman Leslie Carroll. Diamond-shaped medal, 2 inches on the diagonal (1 1/2 inches square) hanging from 2 x 1 1/2-inch pin and ribbon; front reads "Police Department, City of New York" with departmental arms, and back reads "National Surety, Leslie H. Carroll 1943, Medal for Valor, Tiffany & Co.," stamped "14 Kt. gold" on lower edge with Tiffany quality mark, weight approximately 2.4 ounces; minimal wear. New York: Tiffany & Co., 1943
"Patrolman Leslie Carroll, colored rookie, narrowly escaped death when Leroy Williams, the man he later killed, fired at him and a slug tore his hat off"--New York Daily News.
A rare gold Tiffany medal presented to a New York City policeman for "conspicuous bravery." Leslie Holmes Carroll (1913-1989) was born in Massachusetts to parents of mixed race, and was a postal worker in New York City before being hired as a rookie patrolman in the New York Police Department in late 1942. On the night of 20 March 1943, Carroll and his partner came upon two brothers, Leroy and Joe Williams, who had just held up a Harlem drugstore for $66, and were exiting with a drawn gun. On seeing the policemen, Joe Williams dropped his gun, but it was picked up by Leroy Williams, who fired a shot which left a hole in Carroll's hat. The two brothers fled on foot, but Carroll killed Leroy Williams with a bullet to the back, and captured Joe Williams without a fight. The next day, a judge praised Carroll's bravery, and told the defendant Joe Williams: "It's too bad you're a defendant here today. It's too bad you're not with your brother" (New York Daily News, 21 and 22 March 1943, Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 22 March 1943). Carroll was soon given an honorable mention as one of three policemen who "will be considered for medal awards" (Daily News, 3 August 1943). He was then named as the winner of the department's National Surety Medal for Valor, one of several annual medals presented at City Hall Plaza in June 1944 (New York Age, 13 May 1944).
Detective Carroll received numerous other honors and decorations, and remained with the NYPD through at least 1962. He spent the last years of his life in Sacramento, CA, where he became a pastor. The National Surety Medal for Valor was offered annually from at least 1935 to 1947, although we have not traced any other examples at auction--or any other medals issued to Black policemen.
