Patrolman James H. Marshburn
North Carolina Highway Patrol
North Carolina
End of Watch: Saturday, September 19, 1964

Biographical Info
Age: 21
Tour of Duty: 1 month, 3 weeks
Badge Number: Not available

Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Saturday, September 19, 1964
Weapon Used: Handgun; .45 caliber
Suspect Info: shot and killed

Patrolman James Marshburn was shot and killed by an escaped convict on Interstate 95 five miles north of Lumberton.

He and another patrolman came upon two escapees walking down the southbound lane a short distance from a stolen car they had just abandoned. As the officers exited their patrol cruiser, both escapees opened fire with .45 caliber pistols. In an exchange of gun shots, Patrolman Marshburn was shot three times in the stomach and one escapee was killed. The other convict dropped his gun and ran into the nearby woods. Patrolman Marshburn died at the hospital an hour and a half later.

The suspects had escaped from a prison work detail in Raleigh. They used stolen guns taken earlier when they broke into a National Guard building.

The other escapee was captured four hours after the shooting when bloodhounds flushed him out of the woods. He had been sentenced to prison in 1953 for armed robbery, motor vehicle theft, and felony B&E. He received an additional 35 years for Trooper Marshburn's murder. He was released from prison on May 2, 1991.

Patrolman Marshburn is survived by his mother and three sisters.