Roll of Honor
John H. "Jack" Horst
Incident
Special Agent Jack Horst suffered a fatal heart attack while investigating the theft of a large number of brass couplings from the railroad yards in Clinton, Iowa.
An Illinois State Police trooper had conducted a traffic stop on Route 30, east of Morrison, and discovered the stolen brass after inquiring about the vehicle's heavy load. Special Agent Horst responded to the scene in Whiteside County, Illinois, to inspect the brass and to conduct a follow-up investigation. He was speaking with one of the suspects when he began to show symptoms of a heart attack.
He was transported to a Mercy Hospital in Clinton, Iowa, where he was pronounced dead.
The two brothers who stole the brass were convicted of larceny and sentenced to three years of probation and restitution.
Special Agent Horst was a U.S. Army veteran of WWII and had served in law enforcement for 27 years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, son, and four daughters.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-RR-106FC252- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Also honored at salute.nw — U.S. Army. One record, 2 gates. John is one person.
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Tributes
I served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Special Agent Horst gave the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad Police Department 27 years.
Thank you for your service to the Chicago community. Thank you for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
John H. "Jack" Horst served in the U.S. Army before joining law enforcement.
Special Agent John H. "Jack" Horst is one of 1 officers lost to cardiac events in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,756 officers honored here.
In IL, 45 of 1,318 officers were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 3.4% of this state's fallen. That is 3.4 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.
At Chicago and Northwestern Railroad Police Department, 1 of 18 officers on record were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 5.6% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Cardiac compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. John H. "Jack" Horst's cause is highlighted.
How John H. "Jack" Horst Compares
When Cardiac Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Cardiac deaths across the full memorial record. John H. "Jack" Horst is highlighted in Apr.
Incident Location
Military Service
John H. "Jack" Horst served in the U.S. Army before joining law enforcement.
Visit John H. "Jack" Horst’s page on salute.nw →
His full service record — units, decorations, where he served — is kept on salute.nw.
Others Who Wore This Badge
17 officers from Chicago and Northwestern Railroad Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
