In the early morning hours of July 26, 1987, a call came in reporting a residential burglary near Caplinger Mills, a small community roughly eight miles south of Stockton, Missouri. Responding to the call was Cedar County Sheriff Charles Albert Larew, a 35-year-old lawman who had dedicated 13 and a half years to the department, starting as a dispatcher and working his way up to being elected sheriff in 1984.
Upon arriving at the mobile home, Sheriff Larew approached the front door.
As he turned the doorknob to investigate the reported burglary, it triggered a deadly booby trap. A. 30 caliber rifle, cleverly rigged with a string connecting its trigger to the doorknob, discharged a single round. The bullet tore through the paneling, insulation, and sheeting of the home, striking Sheriff Larew in the head and killing him instantly. His adherence to proper police procedure had tragically positioned him directly in the path of the fatal shot.
The investigation that followed uncovered a chilling plot. The residents of the mobile home, brothers Shelby Debler, 32, and Brent Debler, had set the trap themselves. Their intention, authorities discovered, was not necessarily to kill a law enforcement officer, but to have a third party blamed for setting the device. They had reportedly believed the rifle was positioned in a way that would miss anyone at the door.
Both Shelby and Brent Debler were subsequently arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the death of Sheriff Larew. Following their trials, Brent Debler was sentenced to life in prison. In November 2009, his request for parole was denied. Shelby Debler initially received a death sentence. However, he appealed his conviction, and while the Missouri Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, his sentence was vacated in 1993 due to trial errors. Upon resentencing, Shelby Debler was given a new sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Sheriff Larew was survived by his wife, Ruby, and was laid to rest in the Humansville Cemetery in Humansville, Missouri.
