Officer Robert Marshall was shot and killed while investigating a suspicious person.
Officer Marshall was shot and killed after he and his partner stopped a suspicious man in front of a saloon on 19th Street near the corner of Grove Street. Officer Marshall’s partner began to search the suspect and as his hand passed over a hidden revolver the suspect pushed him to the ground and fled. Officer Marshall pursued the suspect into the hall of a house at 1910 Grove Street. As he entered the dark hall the suspect opened fire, killing Officer Marshall. The bullet entered Officer Marshall's chest severing the aorta. The suspect fled the scene following the shooting but was apprehended after the home he was hiding in was surrounded by police officers armed with shotguns. The suspect, Teddy Banks, was tried twice for the murder of Officer Marshall. The first trial he was given the death penalty. The second trial he was again convicted of the murder but given a forty year sentence.
Officer Marshall, 33, was the son of Ruben and Henrietta Marshall. He had served with the police department for three years in an undercover assignment. Interred: Highland Cemetery.
Article by Brent Marchant
Missouri Law Enforcement Memorial