Officer Charles J. Russell

Charles J. Russell

Officer Charles Russell and Officer Edward Petticord were shot near 24th Street and Indianapolis Avenue after the officers stopped two men for questioning.

Both officers were rushed to a local hospital, where Officer Russell died a short time later, and Officer Petticord succumbed to his wounds two days later.

One of the suspects was apprehended the next day, subsequently convicted of murder, and sentenced to death. On February 8, 1907, he was the last person to be executed by hanging in the state before the method was replaced by electrocution. The second suspect was shot and killed on August 25, 1908, during a shootout with the sheriff and deputies of the Monroe County Sheriff's Department in Kentucky.

Officer Russell had served with the Indianapolis Police Department for five years. He was survived by his wife and four children.