★☆★ OFFICER SILAS MARTZ ★☆★

By: Keith Dameron, Historian – Colorado Law Enforcement Memorial

Officer Silas Martz, 43, was shot and killed on October 7, 1903, inside the Palace Drug store near Second and Main. He was attempting to arrest Dr. Charles O. Rice, 44, who was intoxicated after consuming alcohol and morphine, and was armed with a .45-caliber Colt revolver. By 8 p.m. Rice had become “crazed.” He threatened employees and customers and chased them from the store. A crowd estimated at 1000 people gathered outside and police were holding them back not knowing what Rice would do next. Finally, at about 9:30 p.m. Officers Martz and Daly entered the building and attempted to talk to Rice. Rice waited until Martz was about 8 feet away and shot Martz in the neck. With Daly’s help, Martz was able leave the store and go across the street. He was attended to immediately but died in an ambulance on the way to the hospital from a severed jugular vein.

Officer Elwin Slater, 47, was outside and the crowd was jeering the police officers for their perceived inability to arrest Rice. Slater determined that he would sneak in and crawl around to where Rice was located and entered the store at about 9:45 p.m. He was soon shot in the right leg. Slater was helped out of the store and taken to the hospital. Investigation later revealed that Slater had partially drawn his gun and had accidentally shot himself when he crouched down. The bullet left a hole on the inside of his holster and entered his thigh causing internal hemorrhaging. He died the next day, October 8, at 5:12 p.m. from this self-inflicted wound, believing he had been shot by Rice.

The drug store did not have a rear entrance and that hampered efforts to capture Rice. Just before Slater entered the store others were working on a different plan. Detective F. Rubichaud, Assistant Fire Chief Campbell and Firefighter Davenport, had gained access to an adjoining business, went to the basement, removed a partition and found Dr. Rice passed out in the basement of the drug store. He was arrested and charged with murder. Dr. Rice had been the family physician for the Martz family for 12 years, which may have led Martz to think he could talk him into surrendering.

Silas Martz (or Marts) was born in Ringgold County, Iowa, in November, 1859, to Charles and Lucinda Martz. He married Cora Johnson in Colorado Springs on December 21, 1890. He was survived by his wife and daughter Myrtle, 12.

Elwin Merrill Slater was born in Illinois in April, 1856. He married Zilpha May Eno in Tonica, Illinois, on February 27, 1881. He was survived by his wife and three children, LeeRoy, 21, Joseph, 17 and Ethel, 13.

A double funeral ceremony was held on October 11 at the First Baptist Church at Ninth and Court. Both men were remembered for their dedication to duty and the love they showed to their families. More than 2,000 people attended and it was reported that several hundred carriages were in the procession to Riverview (now called Roselawn) cemetery, where they were buried side by side.

Dr. Rice was so drunk that he didn’t remember anything that occurred that evening. He apparently had had a problem with alcohol for some time and had recently started adding cocaine and morphine to the mix. A trial was held in December and Rice’s defense was “temporary insanity”. A number of doctors testified to that and Rice was found not guilty by a jury on December 31, 1903. He died from cancer in 1922 at the age of 63.

Sources:
Pueblo Police Department
Pueblo Chieftain-Oct 8-20, 1903 and May 12, 2001
Deputy Chief Ronald A. Gravatt (retired) Pueblo PD, Research
Ancestry - Library Edition