On the evening of March 2, 1985, Missouri State Highway Patrol Corporal James Froemsdorf was patrolling Interstate 55 near Brewer, Missouri. A nine-year veteran of the force and a father of three, Froemsdorf initiated a traffic stop on a speeding vehicle driven by Jerome Mallett. After running a background check, the trooper discovered that Mallett was wanted on outstanding warrants for armed robbery and probation violation in Texas.
Following protocol, Froemsdorf placed Mallett under arrest, handcuffed his hands behind his back, and seated him in the front passenger seat of the patrol car to prepare for transport to the Perry County Jail.
Unbeknownst to the corporal, Mallett possessed a physical deformity in his hand resulting from an old injury, which allowed him to compress his hand to the size of his wrist. As Froemsdorf drove, Mallett managed to slip one hand out of the handcuffs. He lunged at the trooper, engaging in a violent struggle for control of the officer's service weapon. Mallett succeeded in wrestling the. 357 Magnum revolver away and fired multiple shots, striking the 35-year-old White male in the chest and neck. The fatal wounds were inflicted despite the trooper wearing a protective vest, as the bullets struck above the armor.
Mallett fled the scene, sparking a massive manhunt involving hundreds of law enforcement officers, dogs, and aircraft sweeping through the rural Missouri terrain. The search continued for three days until March 5, 1985, when authorities located and apprehended Mallett in a residence near Desloge, Missouri. He was taken into custody without further incident, bringing an end to the intense search that had gripped the local community.
The subsequent legal proceedings saw Jerome Mallett charged with first-degree murder. During the trial, prosecutors detailed the brutal nature of the execution-style killing of a law enforcement officer. Mallett was found guilty and sentenced to death. After spending over 16 years on death row and exhausting his appeals, the sentence was carried out. Jerome Mallett was executed by lethal injection on July 11, 2001, at the Potosi Correctional Center, issuing a final apology to the Froemsdorf family before his death.
