OZARK, MO – The events surrounding the murders of Deputies Gabriel Ramirez and Michael Hislope mark the deadliest 24-hour period in the Christian County Sheriff’s Office’s history, and one of the deadliest in Missouri law enforcement history.
Christian County Sheriff Brad Cole confirmed Deputy Ramirez was shot and killed on Monday, February 23, by suspect Richard Bird during a traffic stop near Highlandville. Then, during a gunfight early Tuesday between Bird and law enforcement officers in Stone County, Deputy Hislope was shot and killed. Two other officers were shot and survived. Bird was later killed by law enforcement.
The deaths of Ramirez and Hislope were one of the few times in Missouri that multiple officers have been murdered in the line of duty during the same event. According to the Missouri Department of Public Safety, the Missouri Law Enforcement Memorial, and the Officer Down Memorial Page, there have been twelve crime events in Missouri over the last 100 years that led to the loss of multiple officers’ lives…