In the summer of 1902, a dedicated officer of the Kansas City Police Department, Sergeant Frank McNamara, lost his life in a violent confrontation. McNamara, a 43-year-old man who had immigrated from Ireland, was a respected member of the force, having been promoted to sergeant after arresting two robbery suspects at Union Station in 1901. He was a husband and a father to three young children.
On the evening of June 28, 1902, a distressed landlady named Lolie Miller sought help at the
police headquarters. She reported that one of her tenants, a man known as Abe Emerson, or 'Rue,' had threatened to kill her. Miller was instructed to meet Sergeant McNamara during his rounds. Accompanied by another man, she met McNamara and Officer Flanagan at the corner of Fifth and Broadway. As the group proceeded towards Miller's home, they encountered Emerson near 7th and Bank, where he was standing with Miller's young son.
As the officers approached, Emerson turned as if to flee. Sergeant McNamara ordered him to halt, but Emerson spun around, brandishing a revolver, and fired twice at the sergeant. One bullet pierced McNamara's left lung, and another struck his right arm. Despite his grievous injuries, McNamara managed to return fire, hitting Emerson twice. Emerson fell to the ground but fired again at the sergeant, missing his target. McNamara staggered forward and fired once more at Emerson before collapsing into the arms of Officer Flanagan. He succumbed to his wounds within minutes.
An ambulance that was transporting the wounded Emerson from the scene suffered a broken axle. The officers guarding him had to draw their weapons to control an angry crowd that had gathered. A police wagon was then dispatched to take Emerson to the City Hospital, where he later died from his injuries. Sergeant McNamara's body was taken to the police headquarters, where colleagues and citizens flocked to mourn the loss of the well-regarded officer. His death inspired the creation of the first police memorial in Kansas City to honor officers who had fallen in the line of duty.
