On a September morning in 2010, Sergeant Thomas Moore Alexander, a 57-year-old male officer with the Rayville Police Department, responded to a report of a burglary in progress at a residence on Highway 80 in Richland Parish. A woman had dialed 911 after hearing the sound of breaking glass, and Sergeant Alexander, being the closest officer, proceeded to the location, which was just outside the city limits of Rayville, Louisiana.
Upon his arrival, Alexander began to search the home.
Unbeknownst to him, three individuals were concealed inside. As he was conducting his search, the suspects opened fire, fatally wounding him. Responding deputies, who were arriving at the scene, heard the gunshots. They were able to apprehend one of the suspects inside the residence, and the other two were captured shortly thereafter.
The investigation that followed led to the arrest of three men in connection with the murder of Sergeant Alexander. One of the suspects, Robert Walker of Rayville, who was believed to have orchestrated the burglary but was not the triggerman, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in June of 2011. He received a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The man identified as the shooter, Richard L. Long Jr. of Monroe, faced trial for his role in the officer's death. In January 2014, he was convicted of first-degree murder and was subsequently sentenced to life in prison without the benefit of parole. The third suspect, Anthony D. Oatis of Monroe, was convicted of manslaughter in October 2014 and was sentenced to 21 years in prison.
