In the early morning hours of April 23, 1906, in Oregon City, a dedicated night police officer named George J. Hanlon, a 50-year-old male, tragically lost his life in the line of duty. His shift took a fatal turn around 3:20 a.m. when a group of fishermen spotted a man burglarizing a local confectionery store and promptly alerted Officer Hanlon. The suspect had already fled the scene by the time Hanlon arrived, heading towards the depot yards.
Undeterred, Officer Hanlon, accompanied by
one of the fishermen, Frank Trembath, began a pursuit of the burglar. They tracked the suspect to Water Street and attempted to apprehend him. As the two men approached, Hanlon informed the individual that he was under arrest. In a sudden and violent response, the burglar drew a. 44-caliber revolver he had concealed in his pocket and fired two shots at Officer Hanlon, both bullets striking him in the abdomen.
As the mortally wounded officer fell, the gunman then turned his weapon on the unarmed Trembath, firing three more shots as he fled, though none found their mark. Despite his severe injuries, Officer Hanlon managed to walk a block to Main Street to seek help. A special electric car was summoned to transport him to a hospital in Portland, but sadly, he succumbed to his injuries before reaching Milwaukie.
Before he passed away, Officer Hanlon was able to provide a detailed description of his assailant. This description, corroborated by Trembath, led authorities to identify the suspect as Frank Smith, a man who had escaped from the municipal courtroom in Portland just the day before. A posse was organized, and on April 28th, they located Smith in Woodburn. The pursuit of justice for Officer Hanlon came to a conclusive and violent end when a civilian shot and killed the convict. A week after killing Hanlon, Smith also shot and killed Sheriff John Shaver of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Department as the sheriff attempted to arrest him.
