Deputy Sheriff James Crawford Bonner

James Crawford Bonner

Deputy Sheriff James Crawford Bonner was accidentally shot and killed as he and several other deputies were on their way to investigate the armed robbery of an Alabama Great Southern passenger train that had occurred the previous day in Bibbville. Deputy Bonner and the posse were traveling in the caboose of a special car that was conveying them to Tuscaloosa. When it was time for them to disembark, one of the deputies reached for his rifle. As he picked up the weapon, it discharged. Deputy Bonner, who was preparing the unit's dogs to search for the suspects, was struck in the chest by the blast and killed instantly.

Deputy Bonner was 33 years old at the time of his death and was survived by his wife and his mother. He is buried in Oakland Cemetery in Birmingham.