At the age of 46, Euclid Joseph
“Pat” Menard was murdered on August 26, 1966, in Yakima County,Washington. He
is my half first cousin two times removed. Euclid was one of 12 children of Napoléon
Leon Menard (1881-1947) and RoseAnna Clara Dupuis Menard (1887-1963).
Napoléon (“Nap”) was born in
Crookston, Minnesota; and RoseAnna (“Rose”) was born in Ontario, Canada. They
met and married in Moxee, Washington, in 1904. According to the U.S. census,
Nap moved to Washington state sometime between 1900 and 1904. Rose emigrated to
Washington sometime between 1901-1902; and, according to the U.S. census,
became a naturalized citizen in 1904.
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As previously mentioned, Euclid was
one of 12 children: five sons and seven daughters. And, in the order of things,
he was child number eight. He was raised in a French-Canadian, Catholic family.
He completed his education through the 10th grade. Physically, according to the
WWII draft and Army enlistment records, Euclid was 5’9”, weighed 140 pounds, had
dark hair and complexion, and grey eyes. At the time of his enlistment in the
U.S. Army in 1942, he was an employee for Carnation Milk Company in Mount
Vernon, Washington. At the time of his death in 1966, he was a cottage cheese maker
for the Darigold Creamery in Yakima, Washington.
According to newspaper articles,
Euclid left his home, without explanation on the evening of August 26. The
state police tried to stop his vehicle for a brake light that was not
functioning. This stop turned into a high-speed pursuit with the car eventually
crashing in a ditch and the “driver escaped into nearby brush.” Inside the
crashed car was a man’s body, shot five times. Though Menard’s wallet and
identification was found on the car floor, he was not identified until after
his employer reported Menard as not turning up for work.
A 15-year old was eventually
arrested for the death, a coroner’s jury ruled the death as self-defense in
that the young man said he shot Menard as he, Menard, had made a “homosexual attack”
on him. We will never know if that statement is true or not, as Menard was no
longer able to defend himself against the accusations. Below are copies of the newspaper
articles covering the death.
Personally, I would like to know
who owned the gun; who was actually driving; and why was Menard’s identity initially
a mystery.
Clues
Sought in Gun Death at Wiley City
YAKIMA (AP)
– Authorities here were still seeking a motive Monday in the shooting death of
an Ahtanum Ridge, Wash., dairy worker.
The
body of Euclid J. (Pat) Menard, 45, was discovered by three Yakima-area youths
Friday night near the Wiley City dump about seven miles southwest of here. He
had been shot five times.
The
victim’s identity remained a mystery until Saturday when an employee of the
Diarygold Creamery reported to the sheriff’s office that Menard had failed to
report to work.
Deputies
later learned that Menard’s car had been impounded on the night of the shooting
about 30 minutes after Menard was found dead.
The
deputies said a state trooper attempted to stop the vehicle because it had not
brake lights. During the chase, the car plunged into a ditch and the driver
escaped into nearby brush, the trooper said.
Menard’s
wallet, found on the floor of the car, contained identification but no money.
Fingerprints of several persons were found in the car and were being checked, deputies
said.
Menard
left home in the car shortly before 7:30 p.m. the night he died without telling
his family his destination. His wife left a short time later for Portland. She returned
Saturday night after being told of her husband’s death.
Source: The Semi-Weekly Spokesman-Review (Spokane,
Washington) 30 Aug 1966
Yakima
Boy Questioned in Gun Death
YAKIMA (AP)
– A 15-year-old boy was picked up and questioned Wednesday night in the slaying
last Friday of E. J. (Pat) Menard, a cottage cheese maker.
Menard,
45, was shot five times. Three boys hunting rabbits discovered his body Friday
night on Ahtanum Ridge, seven miles southwest of Yakima.
The
boy, whose name was withheld, was arrested by sheriff’s Deputies John Thompson
and Paul Parks at his Yakima home. He is being held in the Yakima County Juvenile
Detention Center.
An
attorney retained by the boy’s father stopped further questioning of the youth,
but investigation of the slaying is continuing.
Pros.
Lincoln Shropshire said the boy would be brought before Juvenile Court, but no
time has been set for the hearing.
Source:
The Semi-Weekly Spokesman-Review
(Spokane, Washington) 1 Sep 1966
Slaying
Held Self-Defense
YAKIMA (AP)
– A coroner’s jury decided Tuesday that the Aug. 26 fatal shooting of Euclid J.
(Pat) Menard, 47, Yakima, was justifiable self-defense.
Menard’s
body was found on the Ahtanum Bridge, about five miles south of Yakima. He had
been shot five times.
A
15-year-old Yakima boy was arrested Sept. 1 and charged in Juvenile Court with
the slaying
Source:
The Semi-Weekly Spokesman-Review
(Spokane, Washington) 21 Sep 1966
Shooting
Is Cited as Self-Defense
YAKIMA (AP)
– The shooting of Euclid J. Menard, 47, Yakima, Aug. 26 by a 15-year-old Yakima
area youth, was ruled justifiable self-defense.
Menard, who was shot five times,
was found dead on the Ahtanum Bridge, about five miles south of Yakima.
The
youth was arrested Sept. 1 and was charged in juvenile court with the slaying. He
testified that Menard made a homosexual attack on him.
Source:
Spokane
Chronicle (Spokane, Washington) 22 Sep 1966
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| Posted on findagrave.com by Jerry Conklin |
