Chillicothe, Ohio

In Memory....
A Hero to Retro Bill and a Friend to thousands of DARE students!
Officer Larry Cox, Chillicothe Police Department

Chillicothe Gazette - April 22, 2005

Officer Larry Cox

For the first time in more than 78 years, Chillicothe mourns the death of a police officer in the line of duty and officers seek an unknown man they say shot him.

Officer Larry Cox, a 19-year veteran of the force and elementary school D.A.R.E. officer, was shot and killed around 10 p.m. Thursday in an alley near the intersection of Chestnut and North High streets. Police Chief Jeff Keener struggled to announce Cox's death at a midnight press conference.

Cox is believed to have been shot by a suspect in a robbery and a car theft earlier in the evening. He was off-duty at the time and it is unknown if Cox knew the extent of the suspect's alleged activities before their fateful meeting.

"He was simply walking from his parents' house to his house," Keener said.

The suspect - described as a dark-skinned white male or a light-skinned black male in his 20s, wearing blue jeans and a tan jacket - was still at large as of 5 a.m. today.

Chain of events

It is unknown where the suspect went immediately afterward, but shortly before 10 p.m., a car chase began when Capt. Keith Huffman spotted a vehicle matching the description of the stolen car near the area of West Water and North High streets. Keener said the suspect ditched the car on High Street and took off running.

As the suspect ran west in an alley near Chestnut Street, Cox and the suspect intersected. It was there, Keener said, the suspect shot and killed Cox.

At press time, it was unknown how many times and where Cox had been shot. Ross County Coroner Dr. John Gabis went to the scene and pronounced Cox dead.

An intense search

The Ross County Tactical Team, K-9 units from the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, a police helicopter equipped with infrared scanning and officers from the Chillicothe Police Department, Ross County Sheriff's Office, the Chillicothe post of the State Highway Patrol and other local departments took part in the search.

"We got a lot of cops out here looking for this guy," Keener said.

Many officers walked the streets in the search area, garbed in full tactical gear and carrying assault rifles.

It was a scary scene for Western Avenue resident Jonathan R. Montgomery, 28, who thought his small-town life shielded him from such violence.

"It's crazy ... three blocks from my house a cop gets killed," he said.

The last Chillicothe police officer to be killed in the line of duty was Daniel Garrett, who was killed on Oct. 14, 1926.

Officers united

Cox, 42, joined the department in 1986 and worked on the bicycle patrol and as a patrol officer before rising to the rank of detective. He recently served as the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) officer, going into area schools to teach students the value of staying clean and staying in school.

It was an area he was passionate about, evidenced by the abundance of D.A.R.E material on his desk at the Ross County Law Enforcement Complex.

"It doesn't get any better than that," Keener said, when asked to describe Cox as a police officer.

Ross County Sheriff Ron Nichols and Lt. Lee Darden, commander of the local patrol post, shared the sentiment. Both were on hand throughout the evening and into today to assist in the search.

"This is something you never want to see happen, but know in the back of your head is always possible," Nichols said.

Still, Keener insists this crime will not go unsolved, he said in a vow to residents.

"Residents should know every law enforcement officer in the state is doing everything in their power to bring this guy in soon.

"He will be caught," he said with tears in his eyes.

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