St. Paul Police Department, Minnesota
End of Watch: Tuesday, February 23, 1926
Age: 37
Tour of Duty: 9 years
Badge Number: 195
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: February 23, 1926
Weapon Used: Handgun; .38 caliber
Suspect Info: Deceased
Officers Fred Peitsch and John Schultz were shot and killed while questioning a possible bootlegging suspect at 889 Laurel Avenue.
The man shot the officers several times. As Officer Schultz attempted to crawl back to his patrol car the man shot him two more times, including once in the head. The suspect then fled in their patrol car.
Three suspects were apprehended two days later in Menomonie, Wisconsin, and charged with both murders and several robberies. They were each sentenced to 240 years on the robbery charges but the murder charges were dismissed due to insufficient evidence.
In September 1927 a gangster arrested for murdering another criminal in St. Paul stated that the dead man had murdered two police officers and several others. An investigation revealed that he was the murderer of Officer Peitsch and Officer Schultz as well as eight others.
Officer Peitsch had served with the St. Paul Police Department for nine years. He was survived by his wife and two daughters.