Carlton Wayne Sudduth, a 42-year-old male police officer with the Livingston University Police Department, was shot and killed on Saturday, June 21, 1980, in Livingston, Alabama. His death was the culmination of a series of events that began with an early morning robbery at a restaurant in the nearby town of Eutaw.
On that morning, Percy Leo Dobard and his female companion, Jeanette Kennedy, robbed O'Jim's Restaurant.
After taking money from the waitress at gunpoint, the pair fled the scene. An alert was broadcast to law enforcement in the area, and Officer Sudduth, who was assisting in the search for the suspects, spotted a vehicle matching the description of the getaway car. He initiated a traffic stop on a road leading onto the university campus, radioing that he was stopping the suspect vehicle.
It is believed that as Officer Sudduth approached the driver's side of the car, he was shot without warning. He was later found on the road with several gunshot wounds to his chest. Following the shooting, Dobard and Kennedy fled the scene. A high-speed chase ensued, involving officers from the Livingston Police Department and the Sumter County Sheriff's Office. A roadblock was set up by the York Police Department, and as the suspects attempted to run it, their vehicle was fired upon, causing it to wreck. Dobard and Kennedy were then taken into custody.
Percy Leo Dobard was charged with the murder of Officer Sudduth. Following a trial, he was convicted. The jury recommended the death penalty, and the trial court initially sentenced him to death. However, this sentence was later changed. Over the years, Dobard has had several parole hearings. He was denied parole in 2013 and again on June 23, 2022.
Jeanette Kennedy was also taken into custody at the time of the wreck. Information regarding the specific charges she faced and the ultimate disposition of her case is not readily available in public records. Officer Carlton Wayne Sudduth had served with the Livingston University Police Department for nine years and was survived by his wife and two children.
