Robert Hamrick:1970, Rock Creek, Ohio

   Robert Hamrick was the police chief of Rock Creek, Ohio in 1970.  He was only 29 but was an experienced police officer dedicated to his community. 

   On March 10th, 1970, Chief Hamrick was in pursuit of a suspect. One article reported that he was in pursuit of a speeder. No details about the suspect’s vehicle were made public in early reports. Was it a motorcycle or a car? We don’t know. 

   The chase led down Callender Road. Chief Hamrick apparently hit an icy patch and slid off the road causing some damage to his vehicle. 

   I imagine that this is the long straight stretch of Callender Road that is south of the town of Rock Creek that runs west of Lake Roaming Rock. There’s a short, curving stretch of road on the east side of the lake too. This incident might have happened there but that part of the road might have been completed after 1970. There was quite a bit of construction taking place around the lake in 1970. 

  That longer stretch of road west of the lake seems like a more likely place for a chase. 

   Chief Hamrick was later found unconscious on the seat of his patrol car with head injuries. He was taken to the local hospital but transferred to a larger hospital in Cleveland. He sadly passed away from his injuries on March 20th, 1970. 

  The newspaper articles about Chief Robert Hamrick’s death at the time do not mention many details. Reporters assumed, it seems, that his injuries were caused solely by the car accident. 

   However, it would be revealed later that Chief Hamrick’s gun and nightstick were missing from the scene.

   This brings up the scenario that, after sliding off the road, Chief Hamrick exited his vehicle and the suspect, or suspects, jumped him. They inflicted the head injuries with his own nightstick (one theory is that a tire iron was used). The suspects then placed him back in his car.  It seems they were hoping that Hamrick would die of his injuries without being able to reveal who he was pursuing. Sadly, that is exactly what happened.

   What kind of person doubles back like that? You sometimes see that in road rage incidents. That’s unusual, though, in crimes I have studied. 

   Again, that stretch of Callender Road west of the lake seems more isolated and a more likely place for this assault to have taken place. Was the suspect traveling west or east? I wasn’t able to find enough details about the position of the car or the chase. Hopefully that information is in police files. Knowing where the suspect was coming from and fleeing toward might help narrow down the pool. It might not. But, I like details. 

   Why not just flee after the Chief went off in the ditch? It seems to me that the suspect or suspects were worried enough about being identified and so they doubled back. This makes me think that the suspect was local and/or might have had a lot to lose if arrested. 

   Going back to kill the police officer chasing you is a brazen move and it really stands out to me.  I think the person or people they should be looking for was perhaps a seasoned criminal, was capable of violence, probably had military experience, was male, and was probably local. He might have had some standing in the community. He might have been speeding while in the commission of another offense. The suspect might have been in the company of someone who was problematic in some way. 

   Chief Hamrick had been an officer at Geneva on the Lake prior to his time at Rock Creek. He had served for two years in Rock Creek before his death. Hamrick was a U.S. Army Veteran. Even though he was 29; he had experience. The 1970’s would bring a different type of violent criminal though. Studying cases from this era makes me wonder if anyone could have been prepared for the level of violence and brutality. 

   Whoever killed Chief Hamrick was not just worried about a speeding ticket. They were up to more that night than just speeding, in my opinion. Or, they had serious impulse control and anger management issues. 

  I wonder if the assailant kept the nightstick and the gun. 

  If you have any information about the murder of Chief Robert Hamrick, please submit a tip. Robert Hamrick had a wife and two sons in 1970. He never got to see them grow up. He has grandchildren that he never met. Perhaps someone out there can provide this family with some Justice.

   

Wayne A. Metz lived nearby and a few months later led three patrolmen on a long chase ending in him fighting all three to evade arrest. That’s a considerable amount of road rage. He might be someone to look at here. 

If you have a tip…click the link below:

 https://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Files/Law-Enforcement/Investigator/Cold-Case/Homicides/Hamrick