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Homer Van Meter death...
Homer Van Meter death...
Item # 563279
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August 24, 1934
THE KNICKERBOCKER PRESS, New York, NY, August 24, 1934
* Outlaw Homer Van Meter death
* Public enemies
* John Dillinger gang member
This 20 page newspaper has one column headlines on the front page: "VAN METER, AID OF DILLINGER'S, SHOT TO DEATH" and "Crafty Lieutenant of Slain Hoodlum Leader Dies in an Alley, Gun in Hand, as Police Riddle His Body".
Lengthy text. Other news of the day throughout.
Light browning with little spine wear, otherwise in good condition.
source: wikipedia: On July 22, 1934, FBI agents led by Melvin Purvis and Samuel Cowley gunned down John Dillinger in front of the Biograph Theater in Chicago. That night, Van Meter and his girlfriend Marie Comforti fled to St. Paul.
On August 23, at the corner of Marion Street and University Avenue in St. Paul, Van Meter was confronted by four police officers, including Chief of Police Frank Cullen, former chief Thomas Brown and two detectives, all heavily armed. The officers later claimed Van Meter ignored their command to stop and fled into a nearby alley, where he opened fire on the officers, at which time the officers returned fire, killing Van Meter.
The number and severity of Van Meter's wounds--he was shot dozens of times, and several of his fingers were shot off--would cause some to label the incident an "ambush" or an example of "police execution"[citation needed]. Van Meter's family would later say their kin had been used for "target practice".
The four officers reported $1,323 found on Van Meter, although his friends and associates claimed he was carrying at least $10,000 on that day. In 1939, the FBI announced that it believed St. Paul gangster Harry Sawyer had set up Van Meter to get at his money, splitting the take with the four ranking officers who did the shooting.
Homer Van Meter is buried in Lindenwood Cemetery, in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Category: The 20th Century
No Longer Available
