On a cold February evening in 1987, the town of Dewitt, New York, became the scene of a tragedy that would leave a lasting scar on its law enforcement community. Thirty-three-year-old Onondaga County Sheriff's Deputy David R. Clark, a Caucasian male, was a dedicated officer known for his commitment to public service. He had been with the Sheriff's Office for three years and was a husband and a father to two sons.
On the evening of February 10th, Deputy Clark and his partner, Deputy
Bernard Meleski, were assigned the routine task of escorting three prisoners to the Dewitt Town Hall for a court appearance. As they made their way into the courtroom, the situation took a sudden and violent turn. One of the prisoners, William 'Billy' Blake, managed to disarm Deputy Meleski, seizing his holstered service revolver. Before anyone could react, Blake opened fire.
In the chaos that ensued, Deputy Clark was fatally wounded, and Deputy Meleski was seriously injured. The gunshots shattered the evening's quiet, and a routine prisoner transport became a fight for life. Despite being rushed to Crouse Irving Memorial Hospital, Deputy Clark succumbed to his injuries in the early morning hours of February 11, 1987, marking a somber first in the history of the Onondaga County Sheriff's Office as the first deputy to be killed in the line of duty.
William Blake's attempt to escape was short-lived; he was quickly apprehended in the courthouse parking lot. The aftermath of the shooting saw a swift legal response. Blake was convicted of first-degree murder for the death of Deputy Clark and first-degree attempted murder for the wounding of Deputy Meleski. He received a sentence of life in prison plus 60 years. In addition to the charges related to the shooting, Blake was also sentenced to 20 years for unrelated robbery and drug charges, with his earliest possibility of parole set for 2060.
