Officer Anthony E. Jansen, 25, was killed in the early morning hours of December 30, 1984, while responding to a report of a man waving a firearm in the 700 block of York Street. Jansen and his partner entered a side yard to investigate a prowler identified as Ricky McIntosh. As officers approached, another officer on the scene discharged his weapon; Jansen was struck by two bullets, one piercing his lung and the other lodging in his spine. He was taken to St. Luke Hospital and pronounced dead shortly after arrival.

An A. 357 Magnum revolver was recovered and McIntosh was initially arrested and charged with murder. Forensic analysis by the Kentucky State Police later showed the fatal bullets were fired from a fellow officer’s gun, and chemical evidence at a preliminary hearing indicated neither Jansen nor McIntosh had fired their weapons. A judge subsequently dropped the murder charge against McIntosh and the death was officially recognized as an accidental shooting by another officer in the line of duty. Jansen left behind a wife, a two-year-old daughter, and a six-month-old son.

If anyone was in the area that night or has information about the sequence of events leading up to the shooting, please share what is known.