On October 1, 1903, Constable Charles Lott Hays, aged 24, was fatally shot while attempting to serve a warrant at a rural farmhouse in Marshall, Texas. Hays, who was the constable of Precinct 4 in Harrison County, went to the farm with Deputy Constable Sid Keasler to arrest Mich Davis, who was wanted on a warrant. When they arrived, Walter Davis, Mich's brother, informed them that Mich was working in a cotton field.
The officers rode to the field to prevent Walter from warning his brother.
Upon seeing the officers, Mich Davis attempted to retrieve his gun from a nearby building, but the officers managed to arrest him before he could get it. After leaving the farmhouse, Walter Davis took his shotgun and went to the road. When Hays and Keasler, along with their prisoner, passed by, Walter Davis fired a load of buckshot into Hays' side, killing him instantly. Deputy Keasler fired at Davis, wounding him slightly.
Walter Davis was arrested and placed in the Marshall jail. However, later that evening, a mob forced their way into the jail and lynched Davis by hanging him to a tree on the west side of the city. Mich Davis and Nathan Hilton, the Davis' stepfather, were also arrested in connection with the incident.
Constable Hays was survived by his wife, Jamie, and two children. He is buried in Hallsville Cemetery in Hallsville, Harrison County, Texas.
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