Deputy Sheriff Clarence Turner

Clarence Turner

Deputy Clarence Turner was shot and killed as he attempted to arrest an escaped convict. He came upon the suspect who was riding a horse. When he told the suspect he was under arrest, he got off the horse and opened fire with a shotgun loaded with buckshot. Deputy Turner was hit with four pellets, in the leg, groin, stomach, and shoulder. As the suspect turned and ran Deputy Turner showed remarkable courage. He managed to stand up and opened fire with two pistols, hitting the suspect three times in the back.

The 34-year-old convict was arrested after a long stay in the hospital and charged with murder. He had escaped, a year earlier, from the state penitentiary in Nashville where he was serving a 10 year term for a rape conviction in 1921. He was convicted of second degree murder and returned to Nashville to serve an additional 20 years. In 1916 he shot and killed an 18-year-old boy in Rhea County and served part of a 10 year sentence. Having suffered from tuberculosis for several months, he was released from prison in August of 1932. He died on the way back home on August 25.

Deputy Turner was survived by his wife and eight children.