Sergeant Pelham C. Scott

Pelham C. Scott

Sergeant Pelham Scott and Special Officer Edward Juettmeyer were shot and killed after arresting two men in a stolen vehicle at 11:00 pm.

Both men were taken to the police station, located in City Hall at the corner of Lackland Road and Goodale Avenue. The men were being booked when one of them grabbed Sergeant Scott's service revolver. The man was holding Sergeant Scott and a police clerk at gunpoint when the clerk attacked him and pushed him down a flight of stairs.

The man got up and fired five times through a glass door at Special Officer Juettmeyer, who was just walking into the building. Officer Juettmeyer was struck in the left eye. The man then fired the remaining shot at another special officer who was standing in the parking lot. Once he fired all the shots, the man picked up Officer Juettmeyer's service revolver and fired at Sergeant Scott, who was now unarmed and running down the stairs in an attempt to apprehend the escaping prisoner. Sergeant Scott was struck in the abdomen.

The man then fled the scene, stole a truck, and drove to his home in St. Louis. He was arrested a short time later.

Both officers were taken to County Hospital where Sergeant Scott was pronounced dead. Officer Juettmeyer died from his wound at approximately 1:00 am the following morning.

The man was convicted of Sergeant Scott's murder and sentenced to death. On May 16th, 1952, his sentence was commuted to life.

Officer Juettmeyer earned 75 cents per hour as a part-time officer who worked on Friday and Saturday nights.

Sergeant Scott had served with the Overland Police Department for four years and had previously served as a St. Louis County constable and sheriff's deputy for 16 years. He was survived by his wife.