Deputy Sheriff William Francis Propst

William Francis Propst

Deputy Sheriff William Propst was shot and killed while he and two Kannapolis patrolmen attempted to arrest a man who had shot and wounded the police chief earlier in the evening.

The earlier shooting had occurred when the police chief observed the suspect enter a saloon with another man and draw his gun. The suspect shot the chief in the arm and hip when he went inside to arrest him.

Deputy Propst and the two patrolmen located the suspect in West Kannapolis and attempted to arrest him. The man opened fire on the officers, striking all three men. Deputy Propst was fatally wounded in the exchange.

The suspect was eventually apprehended. He was convicted of murdering Deputy Propst but sentenced to only three years of hard labor in the state penitentiary.

Deputy Propst had served with the Cabarrus County Sheriff's Office for 25 years and was retiring on December 4, 1922. He was survived by his wife, four children, one sister, and two brothers.