Washington County Sheriff's Office, Ohio
End of Watch: Saturday, February 7, 1981
Age: 49
Tour of Duty: 14 years
Badge Number: 270
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: February 7, 1981
Weapon Used: Shotgun
Suspect Info: Life with eligibility of parole
Lieutenant Joe Clark was shot and killed from ambush while standing in the kitchen of his home in the 400 block of Dodd's Run Road in Marietta. He was struck by a shotgun blast that was fired through his kitchen window.
The case remained unsolved until September 16th, 2014, when a former Washington County sheriff's deputy was arrested and charged with Lieutenant Clark's murder. The subject had been fired by Lieutenant Clark in December 1979 for using excessive force while on duty.
On October 20th, 2015, a jury was unable to render a verdict and was declared deadlocked. The subject was retried and found guilty of murder on March 11th, 2016. He was subsequently sentenced to life in prison with the eligibility for parole after 15 years. He died in prison on March 18th, 2017. On August 9th, 2017, the offender's conviction was upheld posthumously during the appeal process.
Lieutenant Clark had served with the Washington County Sheriff's Office for 14 years. He was survived by his wife, son, stepdaughter, sister, brother, and parents.