Lee County Sheriff's Office, North Carolina
End of Watch: Monday, June 8, 1959
Age: 50
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: June 8, 1959
Weapon Used: Shotgun; 12 gauge
Suspect Info: Committed
Deputy Julian Powers was shot and killed while he and several members of his department searched for a vagrant who had been stealing food from homes and was wanted for questioning in the shooting of a local farmer.
As they were walking through a wheatfield, Deputy Powers came upon the suspect who was laying down in the field. The man shot him in the chest with a 12 gauge shotgun. The suspect was apprehended after he was shot and wounded by another deputy in a wooded area near Swann Station Road.
The 35-year-old suspect was declared insane and committed at the state mental institution in Goldsboro.