On August 19, 1977, Captain William Henry Beard of the Oxford Police Department in Alabama was fatally shot while transporting a prisoner. During the journey, the prisoner complained about the tightness of his handcuffs. As Captain Beard attempted to adjust them, the prisoner seized his service weapon and shot him. Captain Beard had served with the department for 16 years and was survived by his wife, son, and daughter.
The prisoner, identified as Billy King Odoms, was subsequently char
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