Inspector Joe Carruthers was the second member of the Calgary Police Service murdered in the line of duty. Inspector Carruthers watch ended Tuesday, June 13, 1933.
Circumstances of Death
On the evening of Tuesday, June 13, 1933, two Detectives were receiving a ride home from the Chiefs driver, and an unarmed Inspector Carruthers was riding along. While en route to the home of one of the Detectives, the officers observed a call box ringing. A house prowling complaint had just been received, and the two men responded.
Shortly after, a suspect was sighted, and Inspector Carruthers, along with another officer, became involved in a foot pursuit. Inspector Carruthers located the subject and confronted him. As Inspector Carruthers raised his Flashlight on the suspect, the man opened fire, hitting Inspector Carruthers beneath his arm and piercing his chest.
The gun used in the murder of Inspector Carruthers, a .32 calibre revolver, was later found in the North Saskatchewan river, and in 1957, the Calgary Herald printed an article stating that the man responsible for the killing was institutionalized in a Saskatchewan mental institution and “hopelessly insane”.
The identity of the mentally estranged man responsible was never released. Inspector Joe Carruthers was a third generation police officer, and at the time of his death, was a 20 year veteran of the Calgary Police Service. Inspector Carruthers was also 46, and was about to marry for the first time
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