Cal U. Palmer

Enid Police Department — Enid, OK

Felonious

End of Watch July 8, 1936

Age 38

Tour of Duty 2 yrs

The Vigil Panel 71 ›

Gender Male

Incident Service The Sacrifice Department 3

Incident

Police Officer Cal Palmer was shot and killed after he and his partner responded to a suspicious person call at the German Village on the corner of Grand Avenue and Broadway Avenue in Enid. The bar owner had been tipped off that his bar was going to be robbed and had been keeping watch on non-regular patrons. When the officers arrived, they asked a suspicious man to come with them. He asked to finish his beer first, and the officers let him. As he finished his beer, he slammed it on the table and at the same time lifted a gun next to him in the booth and started firing, instantly killing Officer Palmer and wounding the other officer. The suspect fled but was chased by other officers and killed in a shootout. Unbeknownst to Officer Palmer at the time, the suspect was an escapee from a mental hospital in Minnesota. A member of the Karpis-Barker gang, he had been responsible for the murder of three other law enforcement officers: Marshal John Rose, of the Kirksville, Missouri, Police Department, on November 17, 1930, and Patrolman Officer Ira Evans and Patrolman Leo Gorski, of the Minneapolis, Minnesota, Police Department, on December 16, 1932. Officer Palmer had served with the Enid Police Department for two years and was also Major County Deputy Sheriff. Survivors include his wife and two sons. He is buried in Memorial Park Cemetery, Enid, Oklahoma. The Barker-Karpis Gang committed violent crimes throughout the American Midwest in the late 1920s and mid-1930s. Members and associates of the gang were responsible for the murders of more than ten law enforcement officers. Please click here to view all the law enforcement officers killed by the Barker-Karpis Gang.

Survivors

Survivors include his wife and two sons.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier: BO-US-OK-6913A07A
Stewardship: Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw: April 2, 2026
Last updated: July 23, 2026

Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.

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Tributes

I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Police Officer Palmer gave the Enid Police Department 2 years.
Thank you for your service to the Enid community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Palmer.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Department Enid Police Department

Location Enid, OK

Platform Identity epd.garfield.ok.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch July 8, 1936

Tour of Duty 2 yrs

Age 38

Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious

Weapon Handgun

Offender Shot and killed

Police Officer Cal U. Palmer is one of 17,623 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 54.2% of all 32,508 officers honored here.

In OK, 403 of 582 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 69.2% of this state's fallen. That is 15 percentage points above the national rate of 54.2%.

At Enid Police Department, 3 of 4 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 75% of this agency's fallen.

Enid Police Department

of 4 officers

75% Felonious

OK — Statewide

403

of 582 officers

69.2% Felonious

Nationwide

17,623

of 32,508 officers

54.2% Felonious