Detective Louis Shirley was shot and killed while patrolling the New York Central rail yards in downtown Elkhart.

   He was shot in the back twice when he interrupted the burglary of railroad cars near the passenger terminal.

   Detective Shirley was transported to Elkhart General Hospital where he died. He had voluntarily started his shift 30 minutes early but was shot only 23 minutes later.

   A 24-year-old suspect was convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to two to 21 years in prison and paroled in 1925. The suspect was sentenced to life in prison in 1939 after a conviction of being an habitual offender.

   Detective Shirley, from Elkhart, had received several citations for bravery while in the armed forces. He was single and survived by his widowed mother.

Military Service United States Army World War I Private First Class (PFC)

The responsibilities of the New York Central Railroad Police Department (1853–1968) are now under the jurisdiction of the Norfolk Southern Railway Police Department.