Deputy Constable John "Jack" Hewitt

John "Jack" Hewitt

Deputy Constable Jack Hewitt was shot and killed while responding to a disturbance at a dance hall in the tenderloin district of Kennet, California.

A patron at the establishment had threatened one of the ladies of the dance hall, and then threatened a bartender who came to her aid. Constable Hewitt, who also served as the Kennet night watchman, was making his rounds when he was alerted to the trouble. He entered the dance hall and located the man standing in front of the woman's room. As he approached, the man suddenly shot him in the chest, killing him.

The man was arrested, charged with murder, tried and acquitted.