On September 7, 1989, Lieutenant Richard Gammill, a 46-year-old male resident of Joplin, Missouri, passed away due to medical complications resulting from gunshot wounds he had sustained in the line of duty nine years earlier. A veteran of the Joplin Police Department, Gammill had served the community for years, rising to the rank of Lieutenant before his death.
His passing was directly attributed to injuries inflicted during a violent altercation that occurred while he was a sergeant responding to a call for assistance.
The chain of events leading to his death began on May 22, 1980, when law enforcement officers were dispatched to the Howard Johnson's Hotel located at 3500 Rangeline Road in Joplin. A man at the hotel, identified as Michael McCall, had contacted authorities claiming he had been shot while driving on the interstate. Officer Jon Hubbard and Detective Larry Hopper were the first to arrive at the scene to investigate the report. However, upon their arrival, McCall became uncooperative and refused to speak with them.
Sergeant Gammill arrived shortly thereafter to assist the other officers. As the situation escalated, McCall suddenly produced a. 38-caliber handgun and opened fire on the three law enforcement officials. In the ensuing exchange, McCall shot all three officers. Gammill was struck in the upper left shoulder and the right mid-section of his back. Despite being wounded, the officers returned fire, and Detective Hopper struck McCall three times, killing him at the scene and ending the immediate threat.
Although Gammill survived the initial shooting, the injuries he sustained had lasting and severe consequences on his health. Over the following years, he developed stress diabetes and other medical issues directly stemming from the trauma of the 1980 incident. These complications progressively deteriorated his condition, ultimately leading to his death nearly a decade after the shootout. His sacrifice is remembered as a delayed but direct result of his service during that violent confrontation.
