On April 11, 1985, Webster County Sheriff George Goare, a 47-year-old male, was killed in the line of duty. The long-serving sheriff, with 25 years of service in law enforcement, was transporting a 19-year-old murder suspect, Welton Jerome Thomas, to Richland, Georgia. Thomas had been arrested for the murder of another man just six days prior and had offered to lead Sheriff Goare to the location of the murder weapon from that case.
While en route, Thomas, who was handcuffed and in the
back seat of the patrol car, managed to distract the sheriff. He then reached into the front, grabbed Sheriff Goare's own handgun, and a struggle ensued. During the altercation, Sheriff Goare was shot and killed. Thomas, still in handcuffs, fled the scene but was apprehended the following day at his mother's residence.
Welton Jerome Thomas was subsequently charged with the felony murder of Sheriff Goare and escape with a dangerous weapon. At his trial, Thomas claimed that the sheriff had assaulted him and that the shooting was unintentional, occurring as they struggled over the firearm. A jury convicted Thomas on both counts. He was sentenced to serve two life terms in prison, with an additional ten years to be served concurrently.
