Marshall County Sheriff's Department, Mississippi
End of Watch: Wednesday, May 7, 1986
Age: 50
Tour of Duty: 20 years
Badge Number: M-1
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: May 7, 1986
Weapon Used: Handgun; .22 caliber
Suspect Info: Sentenced to life
Sheriff Osborne Bell was shot and killed while assisting a deputy arrest a suspect on a drug-related charge. The deputy had stopped to investigate a car parked 500 feet south of Jamison road on Highway 309. When Sheriff Bell arrived a struggle resulted with the driver when they noticed drug paraphernalia in the car. The suspect shot Sheriff Bell in the face. The deputy returned fire wounding the suspect. Sheriff Bell died while en-route to a hospital in Tennessee.
The suspect was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death. His conviction was overturned and he was tried a second time and sentenced to life with the possibility of parole. He was denied parole for the fifth time in 2011.
Sheriff Bell had served in law enforcement for 20 years. He had been the Marshall County Sheriff for six years. He was Mississippi's first black coroner before being elected sheriff. He was survived by his wife and four children.