Bath Township Constable's Office, Indiana
End of Watch: Thursday, November 11, 1824
Age: 24
Tour of Duty: 1 week
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Stabbed
Date of Incident: November 3, 1824
Weapon Used: Edged weapon; Knife
Suspect Info: Pardoned in 1825
Constable Robert Murphy died eight days after being stabbed while attempting to serve a warrant in Bath Township.
The subject of the warrant was a 75-year-old man who was wanted for assaulting a female neighbor. When Constable Murphy first spoke to the man, the subject refused to accompany him and instead said he would appear the next morning.
Constable Murphy left the cabin but later returned to take the man into custody. He was met on the doorstep by the man who had pulled a butcher knife that he had hidden between logs in the wall. The man thrust the knife into the left side of Constable Murphy, who succumbed to his wound eight days later.
The man was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death. On May 27th, 1825, as he stood on the gallows, the governor arrived by horseback from Indianapolis to grant him a pardon.
Constable Murphy had only recently been appointed as a constable. He was survived by his five brothers, three sisters, parents, and paternal grandparents.
Constable Murphy is the first known law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty in the state of Indiana.