Officer Norman L. Schoen 29 years old, was shot and fatally wounded by an unknown assailant at about 11 o'clock at night on Tuesday, March 6, 1928, next door to his home at 88 North Irvington Avenue, as he was returning from his beat in west Indianapolis. Officer Schoen was found lying face downward between the sidewalk and the curb with a bullet wound in his back, the bullet having lodged in his heart. He held his flashlight in his hand. A Butler student found Officer Schoen and called a neighboring doctor for assistance. Officer Schoen was carried into his home where he died soon afterward without regaining consciousness.

Officer Schoen was believed to have been shot by someone in an automobile who awaited his arrival to "get him." In reconstructing the story, police pictured Officer Schoen being called to the parked car, where he was shot before he could draw his revolver to defend himself.

A Chrysler automobile seen speeding east on Washington Street shortly after 11 o'clock was believed to have carried the assailant. All cities east of Indianapolis were notified to be on the lookout for suspects, and a police emergency squad went as far east as Greenfield in search of the automobile. Several squads of detectives, augmented by police, were assigned the task of bringing in the murderer.

Officer Schoen had been a member of the police department since the February of the prior year. He served until the last two months as a motorcycle policeman. At the time of his death, he was assigned the task of filling in on districts while patrolmen were on their vacations.

Officer Schoen's thirteen month career was marked by several skirmishes not only with underworld characters, but other citizens as well, and police believed these encounters led the killer to a decision to slay Schoen. Officer Schoen's widow told detectives that her husband mentioned on numerous occasions that "those bootleggers will get me."

Officer Schoen, a lifelong residence of Indianapolis, was a veteran of World War I. He joined the 147th aero squadron motor transport service and drove an ambulance in France for fourteen months. His funeral was a military service attended by hundreds of friends and acquaintances. The funeral cortege of more than 40 cars followed the body to Crown Hill cemetery.

Officer Schoen was survived by his widow and two small daughters. His murder remains unsolved.

Source:  The Indianapolis Star, March 7, 8, 9 and 11, 1928.