In the midst of labor unrest that gripped the city, Patrolman Theodore E. Gerischer, a 32-year-old White/Caucasian male, met a tragic and untimely end on Sunday, November 26, 1911, in Muscatine, Iowa. His death came violently and swiftly while he was carrying out his duties, attempting to apprehend a suspect in a period of heightened tensions.
On that fateful day, Patrolman Gerischer encountered a group of five men. One of the men took flight, prompting Gerischer to give chase.
In an effort to halt the fleeing individual, the officer fired a warning shot, which successfully caused the man to stop. However, as Gerischer approached to make the arrest, the suspect produced a revolver and shot the patrolman in the head, inflicting a fatal wound.
The search for the assailant was immediate and spread beyond the borders of Iowa. The following day, the suspect was located and captured in the neighboring city of Rock Island, Illinois. Swift justice followed, and on December 26, 1911, the man was convicted of first-degree murder for the killing of Patrolman Gerischer. The court imposed a sentence of life in prison for the crime. Years later, in 1934, the convicted murderer was granted parole. His freedom was short-lived, however, as on February 1, 1935, he was once again facing a prison sentence, this time in Joliet, Illinois, for the attempted murder of a Rock Island police officer.
