John Even Moss Jr.

John E. Moss Jr., 65, of Henderson, NV, passed away at home on January 24, 2020.

John was born in Washington, DC on January 23, 1955 to the late John and Ruth Moss.  His father was in the Army and his mother was a schoolteacher.  The family lived in Germany, Texas and Alaska in John’s early years.  When John was 11 years old, the family moved to Hyattsville, MD, a suburb of Washington, DC. 

John attended Archbishop Carroll High School and then Georgetown University in Washington, DC.  He was a psychology major in college.   He later obtained a Master of Science in Management from The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD.

John joined the Prince George’s County, MD Police Department after college in July of 1976 and rose through the ranks to become the youngest member of the department to reach the rank of Deputy Chief of Police.  He served in every component of law enforcement including patrol operations, criminal investigations, internal investigations, the press office, community relations and a host of special assignments. 

Upon his retirement from the Police Department, John served as Deputy Director of the Maryland Police Corps; and later as the Chief Assistant Sheriff for Prince George’s County, MD.  He also taught Organizational Structure and law classes at Baltimore City Community College.  Later, John served as the Chief of Police for the Town of Bladensburg, MD.  He was ultimately appointed as Bladensburg’s Town Administrator, where he led collaborative efforts among neighboring cities and towns, the county and the state.

Throughout his illustrious career, John completed numerous certification programs, to include: Certified Public Manager -  George Washington University; Senior Executive Institute International City/County Management Association - Charlottesville VA; Senior Management Institute for Police, Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) - Boston MA; Executive Management, Robert H. Smith School of Business - The University of Maryland; and the FBI National Academy - Quantico, VA.

John had a lifelong love of music, mastering the bass guitar, keyboard and clarinet.  He was a member of several bands in high school and beyond; and recorded his own music tracks.  John moved to Henderson, NV in 2017 from Bowie, MD.  He enjoyed traveling, listening to music, reading, reality television, and spending time with family and friends.  His fun-loving spirit, wit and generosity touched all who knew him and will be missed.  John is survived by his beloved wife of 35 years, Veronica (Cole); sons Andrew and Alex (Amy); family and many friends.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, Feb. 8 at 1pm at St. James the Apostle Catholic Church, 1920 N. Martin L. King Blvd., Las Vegas, NV 89106.   There will be a prelude in the church at 12pm prior to the funeral with a video and several speakers.  In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations can be made in memory of John Moss Jr. to Concerns of Police Survivors (COPS) at http://www.concernsofpolicesurvivors.org.