HONOR ROLL
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Daniel O’ConnellAppointed May 18, 1882
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Patrolman Daniel O'Connell1, after only four weeks and two days on the job, was found shot in the head around 0800 hours (8:00 a.m.) on Saturday, June 17, 1882, at the corner of Summit Avenue and Walnut Street in the city of Saint Paul. And as reported in the Daily Globe and other publications, it was "a murder most foul and terrible". He had been shot with an old fashioned pepperbox style muzzle-loading cap and ball revolver and became the first Saint Paul police officer to be killed in the line of duty. Items stolen from an earlier burglary of the Andrew O. Bailey residence at 273 Dayton Avenue were found at the scene of the fatal shooting.
O'Connell was just off duty, relieved by Patrolman Robert Palmer2 around 0230 hours (2:30 a.m.) and wending his way homeward from his assigned post on Fort Road, along upper Third Street, when he was confronted by a wild-eyed young fellow later identified as William F. Bickel, Jr. Hatless and shoeless, with pistol in hand, Bickel excitedly exclaimed that a couple of burglars had just departed his nearby residence at 342 West Third Street. After examining the grounds around the premise, O'Connell gave chase, following the trail the suspects had taken into the bushy area at the brow of the hill. Being off-duty he was not missed at headquarters and the first intimation of his tragic end was from a man who found him lying face downward, cold in death, in an empty lot owned by Frank B. Clarke near the corner of Summit Avenue and Walnut Street, close to the spot where it is supposed he was attempting the arrest of the two suspects. This was between 0335-0345 hours (3:35-3:45 a.m.). There were several people that had heard the gunshot, including Patrolman John Zirkleback3 from his "Seven Corners" foot beat, and even persons that saw two black males running from the area, but no one that made the connection. The fatal bullet (ball) had entered the officer's head through the left temple.
That same day, Mayor Edmund Rice, Jr. posted a wanted proclamation in regional newspapers offering a $500 reward for information leading to the arrest of the suspect parties.
On October 23, 1883, two black male suspects, Richard L. Underhill (alias Albert or William Underhill and/or Nelson) and George Washington, were pardoned from the Southern Illinois Penitentiary at Chester, Illinois, in order that they could be taken back to Minnesota to stand trial for the murder of O'Connell. They had been developed as suspects by Captain John B. Bressette4 through a series of informants, Charles Deslos, George Morton and Henry Thomas. Captain Bressette would later receive the aforementioned $500 reward. Mayor Rice, Ramsey County Attorney James J. Egan and Minnesota Governor Lucius F. Hubbard persuaded the governor of Illinois, John M. Hamilton, to pardon the two suspects from prior burglary and robbery convictions in Illinois in order for them to be brought back to Saint Paul. The very next day, on October 24, 1883, both men fresh off the train, pled guilty to the murder of Patrolman O'Connell and were sentenced to "life at hard labor" at Stillwater State Prison. In that the pleadings took place prior to a grand jury being impaneled, death by hanging was not an option. Underhill was determined to be the shooter, using his Navy model handgun, previously described.
Although police personnel records do not include a date of birth, several other records indicate that Daniel O'Connell was born in about 1849. Raised in Ireland, "Big Dan" came to the United States in 1865, and had moved to Saint Paul six years prior to his untimely death at thirty-three years of age. Records indicate that he had worked as a day laborer and served as a patrolman in the Special Police (police reserves) two or three times on a temporary basis prior to his appointment as a full-time regular police officer on May 18, 1882. He was survived by his wife, Ellen (née Walsh) O'Connell, and two children, John Daniel, age three years and five months and Johanna E. "Hannah", age two years and four months. Daniel O'Connell's funeral took place on Sunday, June 18, 1882, at the Saint Paul Cathedral, and he is buried at Calvary Cemetery in Saint Paul. Over one hundred years after the death of Patrolman Daniel O'Connell, on June 30, 1986, one of his great-great grandsons, Jon Joseph Sherwood5, was appointed police officer in the Saint Paul Police Department. It must have been in the DNA.
It should be noted, and important to all Saint Paul sworn officers, that in that this was the first Saint Paul officer killed in the line of duty, there was no city bereavement account in existence to aid the family of the deceased and for a while, the widow O'Connell was forced to take in boarders. The common council later, under state legislative authority, paid all funeral expenses and provided Mrs. O'Connell with a monthly income of $25. Added to that, was a $300 donation made by members of the Saint Paul police force, and an endowment raised by the Chamber of Commerce. The Daily Globe newspaper as well as other police agencies and fire departments also took up collections for the family.
Although O'Connell's death initiated an extreme effort at the state legislature for a permanent pension fund for retired police officers and/or widows, it would not be enacted until 1889 and affirmed in 1891 and 1905. Today, our pensions are assured though the merger of our Saint Paul police and fire consolidated accounts into PERA-P&F (Laws 1999, Ch. 222, Art 4).
1 Daniel O'Connell was appointed Patrolman on May 18, 1882 and was fatally injured by gunfire during a burglary investigation after going "off-duty" and enroute home on Saturday, June 17, 1882. This was the first Saint Paul police officer killed in the line of duty. Daniel O'Connell's great-great grandson, Jon Joseph Sherwood was appointed Police Officer on June 30, 1986.
2 Robert Palmer was appointed Patrolman on April 12, 1869 and retired on December 19, 1892.
3 John Zirkelback (aka Zirkelbach) was appointed Patrolman on September 09, 1879; was promoted to Sergeant on May 01, 1887; and died on July 20, 1895.
4 John B. Bresette was appointed Patrolman June 05, 1857; was promoted to Captain in 1883; was promoted to Senior Captain on May 01, 1887; and retired on May 31, 1890.
5 Jon Joseph Sherwood was appointed Police Officer on June 30, 1986; was assigned to the Canine (K-9) Unit on March 08, 1992; was reassigned to the East District in 2013; and retired on October 31, 2018. He is the great-great grandson of Patrolman Daniel O'Connell, the first Saint Paul police officer killed in the line of duty.