By KARI BLURTON
Hays Post
It’s National Peace Officers Memorial Day, ending the celebration of law enforcement known as National Police Week.
All law enforcement in Ellis County are wearing black bands around their badges this week to pay tribute to officers who have fallen in the line of duty.
According to Hays Police Department Sgt. Dan Koerner, the bands are worn to honor fallen officers across Kansas and the nation who lost their lives in the line of duty and for the the safety and protection of others.
The tribute has been in place since 1962, created by a resolution signed by President John F. Kennedy.
The Kansas Historical Society maintains the Kansas Law Enforcement Memorial, which lists all officers who have fallen in the line of duty.
According to the historical society, northwest Kansas officers listed on the memorial include:
Alfred Claycamp
Type of Officer: Deputy Sheriff
Jurisdiction: Trego County
County: Trego
Death Date: 7/14/1962
Added to Memorial: 1987
Circumstances of Death:
When Sheriff Chet McAtee of Trego County was informed by a farmer of a suspicious pair of hitchhikers, he asked Claycamp,who was a deputy sheriff as well as a WaKeeney city police officer, to accompany him to investigate. They located the hitchhiking couple, Harry Jack Bloomer and his companion, juvenile Shirley Kay Nixon, and wanting to question the couple, the officers offered to take them to WaKeeney. On the way, Bloomer drew a gun, shot and killed Claycamp and seriously wounded Sheriff McAtee. A posse numbering nearly 300 on horseback, in vehicles and airplanes, tracked the couple and capture them on July 17th.
Dean A. Goodheart
Type of Officer: Kansas Highway Patrol
Jurisdiction: Colby
County: Thomas
Death Date: 9/6/1995
Added to Memorial: 1996
Circumstances of Death:
On September 6, 1995, at about 6:30 a.m. Master Trooper Goodheart was performing a roadside inspection of a semi-truck on westbound Interstate 70 near Colby. As he was conducting a “walk-around” safety inspection of the truck, a westbound car driven by an 18-year-old college student traveling to Colby from her home in Illinois struck him. Goodheart’s injuries were immediately fatal. Goodheart’s incident brought about the passage of Kansas House Bill 2641, known as the “Goodheart law,” which requires motorists to slow down and move over when approaching stopped emergency vehicles.
Edward Hageman
Type of Officer: Constable
Jurisdiction: Logan
County: Phillips
Death Date: 5/27/1891
Added to Memorial: 1987
Circumstances of Death:
Hageman, the city constable of Logan in Phillips County, was serving a warrant for foreclosure or payment for property held by Cyrus Aldrich in Norton County. Aldrich shot and killed Hageman when he attempted to retrieve the property.
James L. Johnson
Type of Officer: Sheriff
Jurisdiction: County
County: Sheridan
Death Date: 10/26/2006
Added to Memorial: 2007
Circumstances of Death:
On October 26, 2006, Sheridan County Sheriff James L. “Jimmy” Johnson called a local citizen into his office to discuss some activities and behavior the man had been displaying since the death of his father at the hands of a drunk driver. Sheriff Johnson convinced the man to commit himself to a mental health facility to get help, but when asked to take off his jacket, the man pulled out a handgun and shot Sheriff Johnson multiple times. A deputy in the office responded and shot and killed the assailant. Sheriff Johnson was taken to the Sheridan County Hospital and pronounced dead en route to Colby Municipal Airport, where he was to be flown to Wichita for treatment. James Johnson was first elected Sheriff of Sheridan County in 1988. He was 54 years old at the time of his death. Sheriff Johnson is survived by his wife, Linda, and six adult children.
Peter R. Lanihan
Type of Officer: Sheriff
Jurisdiction: Ellis County
County: Ellis
Death Date: 7/18/1871
Added to Memorial: 1987
Circumstances of Death:
A former deputy of Wild Bill Hickok, “Rattlesnake Pete” Lanihan (or Lanahan) defeated Hickok in the sheriff’s election of 1869.Evidently, Lanihan’s election upset some criminal elements and it is conjectured that they plotted to “set up” the new sheriff. On the night of July 16, 1871, a fight started in Henry “Dog” Kelley’s saloon, and when Lanihan attempted to stop the disturbance, he was shot twice. He died of the wounds within two days.
Andrew Miller
Type of Officer: City Marshal
Jurisdiction: Ellis
County: Ellis
Death Date: 11/15/1921
Added to Memorial: 1987
Circumstances of Death:
Marshal Miller was fatally shot while trying to stop a public disturbance created by a group of “toughs” led by a notorious troublemaker named Greenwood. After the shooting, Greenwood prevented anyone from assisting the marshal, who died within a short time. Miller had previously been the city marshal of Hays, as well as the undersheriff and sheriff of Ellis County.
Maurice R. Plummer
Type of Officer: Kansas Highway Patrol
Jurisdiction: Hays
County: Ellis
Death Date: 12/16/1944
Added to Memorial: 1987
Circumstances of Death:
Trooper Plummer, the first Kansas Highway Patrol officer to die in the line of duty, was fatally injured in an automobile accident near Hays.
Samuel C. Pratt
Type of Officer: Sheriff
Jurisdiction: Thomas County
County: Thomas
Death Date: 8/24/1925
Added to Memorial: 1987
Circumstances of Death:
Two robbers on a two-state crime spree had killed a police officer in North Platte, Nebraska and were headed for the Kansas line. A posse led by Sheriff Pratt blockaded the road north of Colby. When the bandits stopped their car, the sheriff approached the side of the car and was shot and killed. The two men made their escape with a posse of cars, airplanes and ground searches in pursuit. One of the assailants was captured in New Mexico and the other was killed in Oklahoma.
Alexander Ramsey
Type of Officer: Sheriff
Jurisdiction: Ellis County
County: Ellis
Death Date: 6/7/1875
Added to Memorial: 1987
Circumstances of Death:
Ellis County Sheriff Ramsey, noted for his effectiveness as an officer, was traveling to Stockton in Rooks County, with Deputy Sheriff Frank Shepherd, to recover stolen property. As they traveled they noticed a fresh horse trail. Aware that one of the West’s most wanted men and horse thieves, Henry “Dutch Henry” Born(e) was operating in the area, they decided to follow the
trail. Entering Stockton, they observed two men selling horses. As the sheriff and deputy approached, one of the men, named Deems, fired. Ramsey was mortally wounded by was able to shoot and kill Deems. The other man, William Stanley, escaped but had been wounded by the deputy sheriff. Stanley was later captured near Kirwin. It was discovered that the horses had been stolen from Indians, and therefore “technically” the two were not guilty of any crime. Stanley was later tried for assaulting a police officer and found not guilty.
George Shindle
Type of Officer: Special Agent
Jurisdiction: Union Pacific Railroad
County: Logan
Death Date: 7/3/1916
Added to Memorial: 2007
Circumstances of Death:
On June 21, 1916 Union Pacific Railroad Special Agent George Shindle was stabbed by a railroad worker in the Union Pacific Railroad yards in Oakley while investigating reports of someone peddling liquor on railroad property. Shindle was treated for his wounds by a physician in Oakley, was transferred to a hospital in Denver where he died. Agent Shindle had been an employee of Union Pacific for 12 years and was survived by his wife and two sons.
Jube Simpson
Type of Officer: Night Marshal
Jurisdiction: Lenora
County: Norton
Death Date: 11/21/1932
Added to Memorial: 1988
Circumstances of Death:
Although there were no witnesses to the killing it is believed that Night Marshal Simpson was overpowered at the Home Oil Station in Lenora by two men who had intended to loot various businesses in town. Two Colorado men were later charged in the killing but the case was dismissed.
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