On the afternoon of Friday, November 17, 1978, Officer Christos Rouses, 53, responded from a nearby fire call in Lowell, Massachusetts, to a silent alarm at Limby’s Drugs on Branch Street. Arriving within a minute, he entered the store and pursued a robbery suspect who fled through the back. The chase continued to 11 Smith Street, where a struggle occurred. During the scuffle the suspect fired a .38 caliber handgun, striking Officer Rouses in the head and chest.

Two other officers returned fire and the suspect was mortally wounded at the scene. Officer Rouses, a 22-year veteran of the Lowell Police Department, was taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital but died there less than five minutes after he had responded to the alarm. No arrests were made in his killing because the shooter died at the scene. A memorial to Officer Rouses was dedicated in 1980 at JFK Plaza in front of the Lowell Police Department Headquarters.

If anyone knew Officer Rouses, his family, or witnessed the incident, please share what you remember.