In the late spring of 1951, a deadly confrontation unfolded in rural Marshall County, Alabama, forever marking the community of Boaz. On Thursday, May 17th, Boaz Police Chief Leonard J. Floyd, a 32-year-old U.S. World War II veteran who had served as chief for two years, joined Marshall County Sheriff E.M. 'Zeke' Boyles and his deputies in an attempt to serve a warrant. The warrant was for a 40-year-old farmer, Aubrey Kilpatrick, on a charge of assault with intent to murder a neighbor.
As the lawmen arrived at Kilpatrick's farmhouse, the situation escalated into a violent gun battle that would leave four men dead.
As the officers were getting out of their vehicle, Aubrey Kilpatrick emerged from his house with a rifle and began firing at them. The officers returned fire, and in the exchange, Kilpatrick was killed. In a sudden and tragic turn, as Kilpatrick fell, his 16-year-old son, James, grabbed the rifle and continued the assault, firing rapidly from the hip. Chief Floyd was struck in the back before he was able to draw his weapon. Sheriff Boyles, 55, was also killed instantly. Chief Deputy Washington Bennett was shot through the head but managed to get another wounded deputy into their car and drive to Boaz to raise the alarm before succumbing to his injuries three hours later.
Following the shootout, James Kilpatrick and two other men who were in the house were arrested and charged with three counts of murder. However, the charges against the two other men were eventually dropped. The legal proceedings against James Kilpatrick were fraught with difficulty. Over the course of two years, he was tried four times for the murders, with each trial ending in a hung jury. As a fifth trial was about to commence, a plea bargain was reached. Kilpatrick was sentenced to a ten-year prison term. He was ultimately paroled on December 24, 1957.
