Patrolman Joseph Zannelli

Joseph Zannelli

Patrolman Joseph Zannelli accidentally shot himself in the right leg while chasing a man wanted for assaulting a streetcar conductor near 5th and Holmes on April 27, 1901. A gangrene infection developed as a result of the wound and Officer Zannelli's leg was amputated, but the gangrene spread throughout his body. He died on May 19, 1901.

Patrolman Zannelli had been with the agency for 18 months and was the first Italian-American to serve on the Kansas City Police Department.