William Lawrence Dunnam was a 44-year-old Town Marshal for the Richton Police Department. On April 1, 1921, he, along with Federal Prohibition Agent Jacob Green, was involved in a raid on a moonshine still near Richton, Mississippi. During the raid, both Marshal Dunnam and Agent Green were shot and killed. Marshal Dunnam had served with the department for one year and was survived by his wife and seven children.
Following the deadly shootout, four moonshiners were apprehended and
subsequently charged with the murders of the two law enforcement officers. The legal proceedings that followed resulted in significant consequences for the accused. One of the suspects was convicted and sentenced to death for his role in the killings. However, before the sentence could be carried out, he took his own life.
Another suspect also faced a conviction and was sentenced to death. In a dramatic turn of events in July 1922, this individual attempted to escape from jail and, in the process, murdered Jailer John Russell of the Hinds County Sheriff's Office. The escaping convict was then killed in the return gunfire. A third man involved in the incident was convicted and received a life sentence in prison. The fourth suspect was found guilty of making whiskey at the still and was sentenced to three years in prison.
