Jailer Paul Sloan, a male officer, met a violent end on Thursday, September 27, 1900, while on duty at the Calcasieu Parish Jail. His death came amidst a chaotic and volatile situation, as an incensed mob descended upon the jail with the intent of seizing a prisoner. The angry crowd, armed with a large pipe, managed to batter down the front door of the facility, creating a perilous environment for the deputies inside.
Faced with the imminent threat of the mob breaching the jail's
defenses, the deputies, fearing for their own lives, discharged their firearms into the air in an attempt to disperse the crowd. This act, however, escalated the confrontation, as several members of the mob returned fire. In the ensuing exchange of gunfire, Jailer Sloan was fatally wounded. The cause of his death was a gunshot wound from a shotgun.
In the aftermath of the deadly riot, authorities launched an investigation that resulted in the arrest of several individuals from the mob, who were subsequently charged with Jailer Sloan's murder. The legal process that followed saw the conviction of the two primary leaders of the mob. Both were sentenced to life in prison for their roles in the jailer's death, although they both maintained that they had not fired any shots during the incident. In a later turn of events, one of the convicted leaders was granted a pardon by Governor Newton C. Blanchard in 1906. The prisoner whom Jailer Sloan was protecting was ultimately convicted of criminal assault and received a 20-year sentence.
