San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office, California
End of Watch: Friday, October 20, 1989
Age: 35
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: October 20, 1989
Weapon Used: Rifle; .30-.06
Suspect Info: Shot and killed
Deputy Sheriff Dighton Little was shot and killed while serving a narcotics-related warrant as a member of his department's SWAT team.
The SWAT team was assisting deputies from Stanislaus County who had executed a search warrant several days earlier and recovered a weapon.
While outside of the suspect's trailer on Highway 99, in Ripon, he was shot in the head with a high powered rifle fired through a window. The suspect was then shot and killed by other officers. Deputy Little was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.