Deputy Sheriff Harold Michael Altman

Harold Michael Altman

Deputy Sheriff Mike Altman was shot and killed while responding to investigate suspicious activity at the home of the Jackson County sheriff.

The wife of the sheriff, who was also a civilian employee of the Jackson County Sheriff's Office, was arriving home from the grocery store and talking on a radio phone with her husband when she noticed a man following her into her driveway. She notified the sheriff, who immediately alerted field units to respond to his home.

Deputy Altman was the first unit to arrive at the home. He found that the sheriff's wife had been shot and killed. The two killers, armed with three handguns, then opened fire on Deputy Altman, killing him.

The sheriff and two deputies arrived at the scene moments later and engaged the killers in a gun battle. Both assailants were shot and killed.

One of the killers was also a suspect in the 2001 murder of his own wife, a case that the Jackson County Sheriff's Office investigated. It is believed that the suspect targeted the sheriff and his wife because civil litigation involving the life insurance of the murdered wife was recently dismissed by a judge. Deputies found ammunition, latex gloves, bleach, vinegar, handcuffs, duct tape, and trash bags inside the killer's vehicle. In addition, both killers wore disguises which included wigs and glued-on mustaches.

Deputy Altman had served with the Jackson County Sheriff's Office for one year. He is survived by his wife, stepdaughter, stepson, parents, brother, and sister.