Nick Sloan always wanted to be a cop, just like his dad.
"Nick idolized his father; he wanted to follow in his footsteps," said St. Louis police Lt. Col. Roy Joachimstaler, a close friend of Nick's dad, Sgt. Terry Sloan."We played softball together a lot over the years, and Nick, even in diapers, would be there watching his dad."On Friday night at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, where Sloan had been pronounced dead, friends tried to console his parents. Sloan's mother, Chris, remarked that being a police officer was what her son wanted to do, Joachimstaler said.
Nick Sloan was shot to death just before 1 p.m. Friday after he and his partner tried to arrest a suspected drug dealer in the 700 block of North Taylor Avenue. The bullet that killed Sloan caught the edge of his bullet-proof vest near the shoulder, then veered through his heart.Sloan was 24. He leaves behind a 13-month-old son, Gavin.
Sloan's partner, Gabe Keithley, 26, was also shot and wounded but returned fire and killed the suspect, Dennis E. Hathorn, 31, of Centreville, who collapsed nearly a block away.Terry Sloan, supervisor of the vice squad, never pushed Nick, his only son, to be a cop, but he didn't object either, Joachimstaler said."When Nick graduated from the (police) academy three years ago, Terry was so proud of him, but a lot of us were proud of him too because we had seen him grow up, literally."Joachimstaler said he was quite impressed with the younger Sloan's work ethic. "He was one heck of a cop. He really enjoyed working with the community. He wasn't afraid to stick his nose into the neighborhood and see what the bad guys were doing."Sloan and Keithley worked in a unit that specialized in going into specific neighborhoods to try to correct problems like open drug dealing. They were working their regular beat Friday in plain clothes in a neighborhood beset by drug problems and other crimes.Joachimstaler used words like "quiet," "unassuming" and "strong character" to describe the younger Sloan."It's still a hard pill to swallow," he said. "We're not only burying a St. Louis police officer, but we're burying Nick Sloan. There's a person behind that uniform."Police said Hathorn was wanted for desertion from the Army, and that could have made him anxious about being arrested.Sloan and Keithley saw a man standing alongside a car, apparently making a drug deal. The officers ordered the motorist out of his car, and he jumped on Sloan and was able to get his pistol out of its holster during a struggle and fire several shots, killing Sloan and wounding Keithley.Police described Hathorn as a crack cocaine dealer, and said his record showed traffic violations but no arrests for drugs or violent crimes in Missouri. Homicide detectives were waiting to hear if he had a record in Illinois.Keithley, wounded in the hip and shoulder, was in serious condition Saturday at an undisclosed hospital. But Police Chief Joe Mokwa said he was much improved over Friday evening. "He's in good spirits. He looks good. He's got a good attitude," Mokwa said.Visitation for Sloan will be from 1 to 9 p.m. Tuesday at Kutis Funeral Home, 2906 Gravois Avenue. on Wednesday, a service for Sloan will be held at 9 a.m. at the funeral home. After the service, participants will go in a procession to the St. Louis Cathedral, 4431 Lindell Boulevard, where a funeral Mass will be celebrated.In addition to his son and his parents, Sloan is survived by two sisters