In the autumn of 1920, a male lawman named Row Brown, a Deputy Sheriff with the Garland County Sheriff's Office, met a violent end. His death unfolded on Thursday, October 14, 1920, during a confrontation that would come to be known as the 'Slaughter Bridge Shootout.' The incident involved a family described by local newspapers of the era as 'a band of desparadoes.'
During the shootout, Deputy Brown was fatally wounded by gunfire.
The man responsible for his death was identified as Tom Slaughter. At the time of the shooting, Slaughter was already a wanted man, having escaped from a Texas penitentiary. His criminal activities were not limited to one state, as he was also sought in Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania for various crimes, including robberies.
Following the murder of Deputy Brown, Tom Slaughter was apprehended, convicted of the crime, and sentenced to life in prison. His time in the Arkansas Penitentiary was tumultuous, and he quickly gained a reputation as a dangerous inmate. His notoriety escalated on September 16, 1921, when he used a smuggled rifle to open fire on a group of guards, killing a fellow inmate in the process. This act led to a new conviction, this time for murder, and he was sentenced to death.
However, Slaughter's time on death row was cut short by his own design. On December 8, 1921, a revolver was smuggled to him, and he orchestrated an escape with six other prisoners, four of whom were also awaiting execution. The freedom of this group was short-lived. Later that same night, near Benton, as the escapees rested, one of the other inmates turned on Slaughter, shooting and killing him. Upon his capture, this inmate revealed that his sole purpose in joining the escape was to get an opportunity to kill Slaughter. For his actions, he was returned to prison but also received the $500 reward that had been offered for Slaughter's capture, 'Dead or Alive.'
