On August 23rd, 1974, Wayne Township Police Officer Leo Casto Jr. was pursuing an armed robbery suspect when he suffered critical injuries from getting shot.

He and other officers were searching in front of a house where an escaped felon suspected in a local robbery had been reported. Then suddenly, gunfire erupted from the side yard and one of the officers got hit. Officer Casto ran toward the backyard, but the suspect followed him and they got into a shootout. After hitting the suspect, Casto started to withdraw to the front yard. But that’s when he was shot in the back—by the wounded officer—who had mistaken him for the suspect.

Leo died of his injuries at the scene. The wounded 22-year-old shooter was arrested and charged with attempted murder.

Officer Casto was 26 years old at the time of his death, and had served with the Wayne Township Police Department for just shy of one year. He was survived by his wife, mother, and father.

Three days after his death, Leo was promoted from Auxiliary Officer to Police Officer, on the same day he had been scheduled to be sworn in as a full officer. His superiors believed he had the potential to help improve police policies, and to fellow officers he was an inspiration. He was about to graduate from Wright State University with a criminology degree, which was part of his continuing preparation for achieving his ultimate goal—to become a police officer.

Image courtesy of Dayton Police History Foundation, Inc.