Patrolman Robert L. Gallowitch

Robert L. Gallowitch

Patrolman Robert Gallowitch was shot and killed while responding to a robbery call at a jewelry store at 8649 South Cottage Grove Avenue.

Upon arrival, he discovered three gunmen disguised as telephone repairmen. The offenders kidnapped a telephone truck driver and used the stolen truck while robbing a jewelry store. As Patrolman Gallowitch confronted the three offenders in the alley, the gunmen began shooting. Patrolman Gallowitch sustained fatal gunshot wounds from one of them during the encounter.

Patrolman Gallowitch's killer was arrested, convicted of murder, and sentenced to 20 to 40 years. In 1975 he applied for clemency because he had deadly kidney disease but was denied. In 1982 he applied again and was approved for his poor health, but a court of appeals overruled the decision and kept him in prison.

Patrolman Gallowitch had served with the Chicago Police Department for less than a year. He was survived by his wife and two children.