Baton Rouge Police Department, Louisiana
End of Watch: Saturday, October 24, 1931
Age:
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: October 24, 1931
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: Executed in 1933
Chief of Detectives Frank Schoonmaker was shot and killed while searching for two suspects who had just robbed a man of $12 and a pair of shoes at the Baton Rouge railroad yards.
Unknown to Detective Shoonmaker, the subjects had escaped prison in Mississippi. One suspect shot him as he searched the second suspect. The men fled but were apprehended two hours later.
The suspect was convicted of murder and hanged on February 3, 1933.
Detective Schoonmaker, who also served as the city's elected constable, was survived by his wife and 8-year-old daughter.