Hamilton County Constable's Office, Tennessee
End of Watch: Thursday, March 7, 1895
Age: 36
Tour of Duty: 6 years, 5 months
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: March 4, 1895
Weapon Used: Shotgun
Suspect Info: Apprehended
Constable Eugene Lynch succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained one week earlier when he was ambushed by an escaped prisoner.
Constable Lynch had arrested the man and a female acquaintance the previous day on a warrant charging them with assaulting the man's father. Later in the evening, after the arrest, the male subject was able to escape from Constable Lynch's custody.
The following day Constable Lynch was escorting the female prisoner to the local depot. As they crossed a railroad trestle the male subject opened fire from a hiding spot in some nearby bushes, striking Constable Lynch in the abdomen with a shotgun blast.
Constable Lynch's condition deteriorated until he died days later on March 7, 1895. Both suspects were arrested in Georgia the day after Constable Lynch's death and returned to Hamilton County to face charges. The suspect who shot Constable Lynch was sentenced to death but the sentence was later commuted to life in prison,
Constable Lynch was survived by his wife, five children, parents, brother and other family members.