Officer Walter W. Stansbury

Walter W. Stansbury

Officer Walter Stansbury was shot and killed while responding to a domestic disturbance.

The male subject had shot his wife the previous year and was known by the police as a desperate character. Around 11:00 a.m., neighbors called the police about a family disturbance at the man's house. When an officer arrived, the man shot at him with a Winchester rifle. The officer retreated to safety and waited for more officers to arrive. Officer Walter Stansbury lived nearby and responded to the shooting. As he approached the house, the man shot the officer once in the chest, mortally wounding him.

Officer Stansbury was taken to the hospital and died at 4:50 p.m.

The man fled the scene but was located later by the sheriff and a deputy on horseback. He refused to surrender, so the sheriff developed a ruse and told him that the officer was not seriously wounded and that the man could make bail if he returned to town. The sheriff and deputy rode in front of the man who remained armed. The man stopped along the way at a saloon and had four shots of whiskey. As the parties entered downtown, a crowd had gathered. The man allegedly aimed his gun at the sheriff as the sheriff tried to get behind him. The sheriff then shot him in the right arm and caused him to be unable to effectively operate his rifle. Allegedly, the sheriff fired five times, and the man fired four times.

The man fled down a city street with a crowd of citizens firing at him. He fell mortally wounded, and several people in the crowd fired more rounds into his body.

Officer Stansbury had served with the Beaumont Police Department for two years. He was survived by his wife and son.

He was buried in the Magnolia Cemetery. The police force raised the funds to place a marker on his grave.