Local Officer To Be Added To Law Enforcement Memorial Wall

Knoxville, Iowa police car (Knoxville Police Dept FB Page)

Knoxville, Iowa police car (Knoxville Police Dept FB Page)

The Knoxville Police Department has received word that Officer Marion Albert “Bert” Conrey’s name will be etched on the Law Enforcement Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C. and officially dedicated on Law Enforcement Memorial Day, May 13, 2015. Officer Conrey was a KPD officer killed in the line of duty in 1938.

Earlier this year the Knoxville Police Department received a request from Dr. Bob Leonard of KNIA/KRLS Radio for information about a Knoxville Police Officer that had been killed in the line of duty. I, Police Chief Dan Losada had never heard of Officer “Bert” Conrey but a quick Internet search uncovered that Knoxville Police Officer Conrey died on April 2, 1938 after being assaulted by a married couple from Tracy, Iowa on March 17, 1938.

Officer Conrey was 56 years old, was married, and had eight children when he died. He had been a police officer for about 23 years. Witnesses reported that Officer Conrey was on patrol when he stopped to talk to the couple that appeared to be intoxicated in the area of Knoxville’s main square at about 7:30 p.m. The couple walked away but then turned around and came back toward Officer Conrey. The male then hit Officer Conrey, knocking him down. The female also hit Officer Conrey and kicked Officer Conrey in the head while Officer Conrey was on the ground.

Officer Conrey received several injuries including a broken jaw and an injury to his head. Officer Conrey was taken to a hospital for treatment. Eventually Officer Conrey was taken to a Des Moines hospital when his condition deteriorated. Officer Conrey succumbed to these injuries about two weeks after the incident. The cause of death is believed to have been “bleeding on the brain.”

The couple was convicted of second degree murder later that year and sent to prison. That conviction was eventually overturned by a higher court due to a technicality. A plea of manslaughter was accepted along with an eight year sentence.

Officer Conrey had an interesting history with the Knoxville Police Department. In January 1933 Officer Conrey and his partner were kidnapped while on duty by a group that had just robbed a bank in Missouri of $14,000. Those robbers eventually left the officers in a schoolhouse in Unionville, Missouri. The robbers took the bullets from the officers’ guns, but left the guns behind. The robbers were eventually caught and convicted. One of the robbers was a member of the Dillinger Gang.

This May, Officer Conrey will join the over 20,267 names of law enforcement personnel that have given their lives for their community. We also hope to be able to remember and celebrate the life of our fallen brother at that time.

Our heartfelt thanks and gratitude is extended to all members of Officer Conrey’s family. I apologize for taking so long to recognize your family’s sacrifice. Rest assured that the delay has not diminished my respect for Officer Conrey and his willingness to give his all for the citizens of Knoxville.

I also wish to thank all those who helped put together the information needed to achieve this recognition – The Knoxville Journal Express, Marion County Clerk of Court, Pella Police Department, Pella Library, and everyone else that provided information or helped collect it.

Posted by on Dec 28 2014. Filed under Local News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

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