Officer Down Memorial Page - http://www.odmp.org

Deputy Sheriff Strother W.
Caroline County Sheriff's Office, Virginia

Deputy Sheriff

Strother W. "Ted" Lewis, Sr.

Caroline County Sheriff's Office, Virginia

End of Watch: Saturday, March 1, 1947

Biographical Info

Age: 52
Tour of Duty: 11 years
Badge Number: Not available

Incident Details

Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: March 1, 1947
Weapon Used: Officer's handgun
Suspect Info: Sentenced to life

Deputy Sheriff Ted Lewis was shot and killed by a prisoner in the old Caroline County Jail while questioning him about a robbery.

During the interrogation the subject struck the weapon that Deputy Lewis was holding, causing it to discharge and strike Deputy Lewis in the head. The man then fled the scene with Deputy Lewis' service weapon.

The man was eventually apprehended after being shot by a posse and almost killed. He was initially sentenced to death but received a life sentence during a second trial.

Deputy Lewis was a U.S. Navy veteran of WWI and had served with the Caroline County Sheriff's Office for 11 years. He was survived by his wife and six children.