On October 1, 2008, 51-year-old Sergeant Jeffry Kowalski passed away at his home in Harlingen, Texas, due to long-term complications from a gunshot wound he had sustained while serving as a police officer in Saint Louis, Missouri. Although his death occurred more than two decades after the initial incident, it was ruled a line-of-duty death by the St.
Louis Board of Police Commissioners, who determined that the pancreatic cancer which claimed his life had developed directly in the organs damaged by the bullet. A veteran of the U.S. Army, Kowalski had served with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department for 21 years before retiring.
The violent encounter that ultimately led to his death took place on February 19, 1987. Kowalski, then 29 years old, was on patrol when he and his partner responded to a report of an armed robbery. They engaged in a foot pursuit of the suspects in the 5000 block of Vernon Avenue in St. Louis. During the chase, a juvenile suspect turned and fired a pistol, striking Kowalski in the abdomen. The bullet caused catastrophic damage, severing his inferior vena cava and injuring his liver, stomach, and pancreas. Despite his critical injuries, Kowalski managed to return fire, striking his assailant.
Following the exchange of gunfire, the juvenile shooter and two other suspects were taken into custody by responding officers. Kowalski was rushed to the hospital where he underwent emergency surgery to reconnect his stomach and intestines. He remained hospitalized for two months and, against the odds, recovered sufficiently to return to active duty in September 1988. He was later promoted to the rank of sergeant. However, the internal damage from the shooting caused persistent health issues throughout the remainder of his life. In early 2008, he was diagnosed with cancer that doctors concluded had formed along the path of the bullet scarring, linking the disease directly to the 1987 shooting. He was survived by his wife and daughter and was buried with honors at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery.
