Rutherford County Sheriff's Office, North Carolina
End of Watch: Thursday, May 31, 1979
Age: 58
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: May 31, 1979
Weapon Used: Rifle; .30-.06
Suspect Info: Executed in 1984
Deputy Sheriff Millard Messersmith, Trooper Robert Peterson, and Captain Roy Huskey were shot and killed after responding to a domestic dispute between a man and his teenager daughter in Rutherford County.
Captain Huskey was the first officer dispatched to the scene and was shot in the head by the suspect as he exited his patrol car. When Captain Huskey failed to check in Deputy Messersmith responded to the scene. As he pulled into the driveway he saw Captain Huskey laying next to the patrol car, and he began to back out of the driveway.
The suspect opened fire on Deputy Messersmith as he backed out of the driveway, striking him in the head. A neighbor called the sheriff's office to report that two deputies had been shot. Trooper Peterson heard garbled radio traffic, and although couldn't make out the transmissions, determined something was wrong and began to head toward Rutherfordton. As he drove into town the suspect sped by him.
Trooper Peterson turned around and attempted to stop the car, thinking it was a speeding vehicle and not knowing the suspect had just murdered two deputies. Trooper Peterson's last transmission was that the suspect was running into the woods. Trooper Peterson was found suffering a from a gunshot wound to the head. His service revolver had been fired once. The suspect was apprehended, convicted of capital murder, and executed in 1984.