Officer John McGonigal was shot and killed while investigating a suspicious person.

Officer McGonigal was shot and killed while investigating a suspicious person in an alley between Third Street and Fourth Street. The shooting took place at 1:05 pm at the entrance to the alley at the Conklin Hotel on Broadway. When Officer McGonigal questioned the man who had a revolver concealed in his sleeve, fired at Officer McGonigal point blank, striking him in the chest and thigh. Officer McGonigal fired three times at the man as he fled, then staggered into the Conklin Hotel. He died from his wounds three hours later.

The suspect escaped but was shot and killed by the Monroe City marshal in March 1921.

Officer McGonigal was survived by his wife. Interred: St. Marys Cemetery.