Patrolman Dave L. Alcox, age 27, of the Oak Hill Police Department in Hitchcock, Ohio, was shot and killed on January 15, 1980, while making a traffic stop on State Route 93. Alcox, who was male and Caucasian, had pulled over a vehicle driven by Lloyd Eugene Brofford, who was wanted in Jackson for writing bad checks. After running a driver's license check, Alcox asked Brofford to come to his patrol car.
Once they reached the patrol car, Brofford shot Alcox in the chest before fleeing the scene.
Additional units were dispatched to check on Alcox when he failed to respond to radio calls. Responding officers found Alcox lying on the ground outside the passenger side of his patrol car, dead from the gunshot wound. Brofford led police on a vehicle pursuit, attempting to ram a roadblock before officers opened fire on his vehicle and took him into custody.
Brofford's trial began on March 24, 1980, and on March 27, a jury found him guilty of aggravated murder. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Brofford died in prison while serving his sentence. Alcox had served with the Oak Hill Police Department for three years and was survived by his mother, sister, and brother. A scholarship was established in his memory by the Oak Hill Police Department to support graduating seniors pursuing education in law enforcement or education fields.
Alcox's death was a tragic loss for the community and his colleagues, who remembered him as a dedicated and honest officer with aspirations of becoming a teacher. His sacrifice is honored annually, and his legacy continues through the scholarship that bears his name.
