Thomas Crane Wales was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 federal prosecutor and gun control

Gun control

Gun control is any law, policy, practice, or proposal designed to restrict or limit the possession, production, importation, shipment, sale, and/or use of guns or other firearms by private citizens...

 advocate from Seattle, Washington, who was the victim of an unsolved murder

Murder

Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...

.

Life and work

Wales was born in Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

, Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

. Wales was a graduate of Milton Academy

Milton Academy

Milton Academy is a coeducational, independent preparatory, boarding and day school in Milton, Massachusetts consisting of a grade 9–12 Upper School and a grade K–8 Lower School. Boarding is offered starting in 9th grade...

, where he roomed with Joseph Patrick Kennedy II

Joseph Patrick Kennedy II

Joseph Patrick Kennedy II is an American businessman and Democratic politician.He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from the 8th congressional district of Massachusetts from 1987 to 1999. In 1979 he founded and led until election to the U.S...

, whose father Robert F. Kennedy

Robert F. Kennedy

Robert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy , also referred to by his initials RFK, was an American politician, a Democratic senator from New York, and a noted civil rights activist. An icon of modern American liberalism and member of the Kennedy family, he was a younger brother of President John F...

 was assassinated. Wales graduated from Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

. He attended Hofstra Law School, where he graduated with distinction in 1979 and served as the Editor-in-Chief of the school's Law Review.

In 1995, a student at the high school that Wales's son attended brought a gun to school and shot and injured two classmates. Soon after, Wales became involved in Washington CeaseFire, most visibly as a vocal supporter of an unsuccessful 1997 state referendum that would have required gun owners to use trigger lock

Trigger lock

A trigger lock is a device designed to prevent a firearm from being discharged while the device is in place. Generally, two pieces come together from either side behind the trigger and are locked in place, which can be unlocked with a key or combination. This physically prevents the trigger from...

s. Wales later became president of CeaseFire. As a community volunteer, he was active in civic organizations and served as a trustee of the Federal Bar Association

Federal Bar Association

The Federal Bar Association is the primary voluntary professional organization for private and government lawyers and judges practicing and sitting in federal courts in the United States.-Background:...

.

Wales worked as an assistant U.S. Attorney in Seattle specializing in the investigation and prosecution of fraud

Fraud

In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation...

 in banking and business.

Death and legacy

On the evening of October 11, 2001, Wales was sitting at his computer in his home office in his basement. A gunman avoided the security lights in Wales' backyard and shot him in the neck, through a window, with a handgun. The killer left shell casings behind. The shots were heard by a neighbor who called 9-1-1

9-1-1

9-1-1 is the emergency telephone number for the North American Numbering Plan .It is one of eight N11 codes.The use of this number is for emergency circumstances only, and to use it for any other purpose can be a crime.-History:In the earliest days of telephone technology, prior to the...

. In his memory, the Thomas C. Wales Foundation was set up to support civic engagement. Marlis DeJong organizes the annual Tom Wales Memorial 5K Run.

Murder investigation

As of 2011, this murder case remains unsolved and no evidence has been found to establish a motive. An airplane pilot that Wales had prosecuted was investigated and his home searched, but he was not charged. The pilot later filed a malicious prosecution

Malicious prosecution

Malicious prosecution is a common law intentional tort, while like the tort of abuse of process, its elements include intentionally instituting and pursuing a legal action that is brought without probable cause and dismissed in favor of the victim of the malicious prosecution...

 claim seek, but the suit was dismissed.

It has been suggested by the media that U.S Attorney John McKay

John McKay (attorney)

John Larkin McKay is a former United States Attorney for the Western District of Washington.John Larkin McKay, a member of a prominent Republican family in the state, attended the University of Washington, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science in 1978...

 was dismissed in part due to his request that resource allocation for the Wales investigation remain high. In June 2007, the FBI

Federal Bureau of Investigation

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...

 cut the staff assigned to the case down to two. There is an open reward

Bounty (reward)

A bounty is a payment or reward often offered by a group as an incentive for the accomplishment of a task by someone usually not associated with the group. Bounties are most commonly issued for the capture or retrieval of a person or object. They are typically in the form of money...

of one million U.S. dollars for information leading to the conclusion of the case.