On a cold Valentine's Day in 1985, the life of John Thomas Scanlon, a 35-year-old White/Caucasian male, was tragically cut short in an act of sudden violence. A dedicated police officer with the Robbinsdale, Minnesota Police Department, Scanlon was a veteran of the Vietnam War and had served his community for 11 years. That evening, he and another officer responded to a report of a burglary at the intersection of France Avenue North and Lakeland Avenue. After a thorough search of the scene, no suspect was found, and the other officer departed.
Officer Scanlon remained behind, sitting in his patrol car to complete the necessary paperwork from the call. In a devastating turn of events, the very suspect they had been searching for returned to the scene. The man, who had eluded the initial search, walked up to the driver's side of Scanlon's squad car and, without warning, opened fire. Officer Scanlon was fatally wounded in the ambush, his life taken while he was still serving his community. He was survived by his wife and their recently adopted son.
The investigation that followed led to the apprehension of a 43-year-old suspect. He was subsequently convicted for the murder of Officer Scanlon and received a sentence of life in prison. Over the years, the convicted killer has come up for parole but was denied in both 2012 and 2022, ensuring he remains incarcerated for the unprovoked killing of the officer.
