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Peary alumnus killed during jewelry store
robbery February 9, 2000 A Baltimore County police officer who graduated from Robert E. Peary High School in Aspen Hill was shot and killed Monday during a robbery of a jewelry store in Pikesville, and the community where he grew up is trying to come to terms with the tragedy. Sgt. Bruce Prothero, 35, who lived in Carroll County, was working as an off-duty security guard at J. Brown Jewelers on Reisterstown Road when armed robbers entered the store at 11:30 a.m., according to Lt. Kevin Novak, a Baltimore County Police spokesman. Prothero chased the suspects into the parking lot, where "numerous shots were fired" and Prothero was fatally wounded, Novak said. He was taken to Sinai Hospital in Baltimore, where he was pronounced dead, Novak said. Novak said Prothero, who was a 12-year police veteran, was married and had five children under the age of 6, including young triplets. Neal Pizzano, a member of the Peary class of 1976, said Tuesday that Prothero graduated from Peary High in 1982 and had siblings who graduated from Peary as well. Pizzano said the Prothero family lives on London Lane in Aspen Hill, and records indicate their parents still live there. Telephone calls to neighbors on the same street were unsuccessful, and a call to the family was not returned. Tom Stack, a Montgomery County police officer who graduated with Prothero, called the shooting a "tragedy" and remembered his classmate as an "all-around great guy." Stack said he attended junior high and high school with Prothero, and knew Prothero was an officer in Baltimore County. Stack said he would ask about his old friend whenever he worked with officers from that district. "They always said what a great guy he was," he said. In high school, Stack said Prothero was athletic, was on the wrestling team, and got along well with everyone. "He was friendly to everybody," he said. "He had no enemies." Pizzano, who along with fellow alumnus Bob Lau initiated a Web site in 1996 to bring together former classmates and teachers of Peary, said a special notice was posted on the Midnight Sun site notifying others of the tragedy. In response to the posting, Bruce Prothero's sister-in-law, Pebble Prothero, responded on Tuesday with her own note. She is married to Bruce Prothero's brother Greg, and both graduated from Peary in 1977. "On behalf of the Prothero family, we thank you for the note about Bruce," her message reads. "We do thank everyone out there for their prayers and thoughts as we work through these difficult times ahead." Pizzano said Bruce Prothero had also married a fellow Peary graduate, the former Ann Warman, who was part of the school's last graduating class in 1984. The Peary High School site on Arctic Avenue is now occupied by the new Melvin J. Berman Hebrew Academy. Pizzano said the Robert E. Peary High School Alumni Association is now in the act of setting up a memorial fund for Prothero's children, and details will be posted on the Web site, available at www.pearyhs.org. In the meantime, Baltimore County Police are searching for four suspects in connection with the shooting. Three suspects are described as a black males, 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet tall, weighing 160 to 200 pounds. The fourth is described as a black male, 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighing 130 to 160 pounds. Baltimore County Police said all four suspects are considered armed and dangerous. Police are also still searching for the older model gray Oldsmobile Delta 88 that was seen leaving the crime scene. Novak said a similar car was pulled over Monday afternoon in Washington, D.C., but police are still not certain it is the same car. As of Tuesday afternoon, Novak said, no one has been charged with Prothero's murder. Anyone with information regarding the suspects is asked to contact Baltimore County Police at 410-887-2198 or Metro Crime Stoppers at 410-276-8888. Callers can remain anonymous and those calling might be eligible for a cash reward that is now up to $10,000 through private donations. |