In the early morning hours of February 8, 2005, a sense of routine marked the end of Sergeant William 'Bill' Rollin Brand's shift at the Monroe County Correctional Center. The 39-year-old male officer, an eight-year veteran of the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, began his drive home, a familiar path that would tragically be his last. As he traveled south on State Road 37 near Zikes Road, the quiet of the night was shattered by a sudden and violent ambush. A vehicle pulled alongside his pickup truck, and two shots from an AR-15 rifle rang out in the darkness.
One of the bullets struck Sergeant Brand in the back of the head, causing him to lose control of his vehicle, which then crashed into a limestone embankment. The fatal encounter was swift and brutal, leaving behind a scene of sudden tragedy. The suspect, a 25-year-old former inmate named Benjamin Steinberg, fled after the shooting. Investigators quickly pieced together the events, pointing to an act of retaliation by a man who had a history with the correctional facility where Brand worked.
The day following the deadly ambush, law enforcement located and arrested Steinberg in New Albany on an unrelated charge. The investigation into Sergeant Brand's murder progressed, and in October 2007, Steinberg was formally charged with the crime. The legal proceedings culminated in a conviction for the murder of Sergeant William Rollin Brand. For his actions, Benjamin Steinberg was sentenced to serve 65 years in prison, bringing a measure of justice to the senseless killing of a dedicated officer and family man, who was survived by his wife and three-year-old child.
