Sergeant William T. Shanley
Chicago Police Department
Illinois

End of Watch: Thursday, December 14, 1933
Cause: Gunfire

Biographical Info
Age: 42
Tour of Duty: 20 years
Badge Number: 760

Sergeant William Shanley was shot and killed while investigating reports of a suspicious man who had dropped off a suspicious vehicle at a repair shop on North Broadway Boulevard.

Sergeant Shanley's partner went to a nearby call box to report their location as Sergeant Shanley entered the garage. The garage owner informed him the man would be back at 4:30 pm. When the man returned with a female companion Sergeant Shanley confronted him and asked to see his driver's license. The man reached into his overcoat, produced a revolver, and fatally shot Sergeant Shanley.

The suspect, John Hamilton, was a member of the notorious Dillinger Gang. He was later found murdered in Wisconsin.

Sergeant Shanley had served with the Chicago Police Department for over 20 years. He was survived by his wife, two sons, and two daughters.

Led by John Dillinger, the Dillinger Gang was a notorious group of mid-west bank robbers. Associates of the gang were responsible for the fatal shootings of 13 law enforcement officers in 1933 and 1934.

Two infamous members of the gang, John Dillinger and Baby Face Nelson, were shot and killed by law enforcement officers in separate incidents.

The other gang members were either murdered by criminals, shot and killed by law enforcement officers, executed for their crimes, or sentenced to time in prison.

 
Photograph: Sergeant William T. Shanley

Patch image: Chicago Police Department, Illinois

Visit Sergeant Shanley's memorial at www.ODMP.org