Officer Down: Minnesota law enforcement officers shot to death, 1970 to 2012
By Madeleine Baran, Minnesota Public RadioDec. 19, 2012
ST. PAUL, Minn -- When a law enforcement officer in Minnesota is shot and killed, it rarely takes more than a few days for investigators to find the killer. Often it takes only a few hours.
The murder of Cold Spring Police Officer Thomas Decker last month is only such case since 1970 that was not solved within four days, an MPR News analysis has found.
The last time police faced a prolonged investigation with no shooter dead or in custody within four days was in 1970 when St. Paul Police Officer James Sackett was killed. That case took 35 years to solve.
Below is a timeline with information on all Minnesota law enforcement officers shot and killed from 1970 to 2012.
An asterisk (*) indicates the officer was killed while off duty.
Graphic by Robert Boos, Minnesota Public Radio
MPR News compiled this timeline using information from the Minnesota Law Enforcement Memorial Association, the Officer Down Memorial Page, court records and media reports.
Read more: FBI searching Sauk River in Cold Spring case
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