Officer Albert Demortiers was shot and killed by an intoxicated man he encountered on the street.

On Saturday, October 27, 1917, around 11 p.m., Officer Albert Demortiers was walking his beat when he was slain on Broadway at the intersection with Middle Street, shot twice from a .32 caliber revolver after he encountered an intoxicated man at a local saloon. Witnesses reported that Officer Demortiers staggered from the sidewalk at the southeast corner of Broadway and Middle with a bullet in his right temple, another in the left side of his neck, and fell in the street. Unconscious, Officer Demortiers was placed in an automobile owned by Georbe Bolz and rushed to St. Francis Hospital but died before he could be treated.

The suspect was arrested at his residence at the corner of Themis and Ellis following the incident. The suspect was convicted of murder and died in the penitentiary after serving seven years of an 18 year sentence.

Officer Demortiers served with the Cape Giradeau Police Department for 6 months. He was survived by a wife, Louise Edith Demortiers; a daughter, Mamie, 11; a son Ralph, 9; his parents and a sister. The funeral was at St. Vincent’s Church. Interred: Fairmont Cemetery.