Patrolman Guy Thomas Davis, Jr.

Guy Thomas Davis, Jr.

Patrolman Guy Davis was shot and killed in Williamston when he stopped a vehicle he observed run a red light at the intersection of U.S. 17 and U.S. 64.

Unbeknownst to him, the vehicle contained three suspects, two men and a woman, who had just robbed a bank in Jamesville. Marin County had not yet notified the Highway Patrol of the robbery or a description of the suspects.

When Patrolman Davis leaned down to speak with the driver, he was shot in the face with a sawed-off shotgun. A doctor who witnessed the shooting and a responding Williamston officer attempted to save Patrolman Davis' life, but he died within minutes of the shooting.

The three suspects fled but were later apprehended after a manhunt with hundreds of state patrolmen. They were located nearby, hiding in a bean field, after a highway patrol helicopter happened to land near them by chance. The chopper's rotor wash blew the bean plants aside, revealing the suspect's location, and they were taken into custody.

The three suspects were sentenced to life in prison on June 30, 1977. One of the male suspects died in prison on January 4, 2001. The female suspect, who was to be released from prison on October 29, 2009, had her release blocked by Governor Beverly Purdue. She died in prison on May 5, 2020. The other male suspect, 21, who was the shooter, remains in prison and is not being considered for parole. He was still in jail on September 17, 2023.

Patrolman Davis was a U.S Army veteran of the Korean War and served with the North Carolina Highway Patrol for 29 years, assigned to the Bertie County District. He was survived by his wife and two children.

As a result of the murder of Patrolman Davis and a similar murder of Trooper Peterson in 1979, communication protocols were changed statewide, and local authorities, along with the NC Highway Patrol, made better efforts to immediately cross-communicate in the event of serious crimes and attacks on officers.

In 2004, the North Carolina Department of Transportation named a bridge on US Highway 17, at the Bertie County-Martin County line, in honor of Patrolman Davis.