Deputy Leo Hemmer was shot and killed on October 12, 1925, as he brought food to the prisoners he was guarding.

As Deputy Hemmer opened the door to a holding area to deliver food, he was jumped by three prisoners, one of who pulled a revolver out of his pocket and shot and killed Deputy Hemmer. It is unknown how the revolver was smuggled into the jail. One of the suspects was arrested later that day.

Three weeks later deputies surrounded a house in Clinton, Illinois, where the other two suspects were found to be hiding. One shot and killed himself. The other surrendered.

Deputy Hemmer had been employed with the Dubuque County Sheriff's Office for eight months. He was 30 years old and survived by his wife, two children, his mother, and several brothers and sisters.

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