Sheriff E. M. "Zeke" Boyles

E. M. "Zeke" Boyles

Sheriff Zeek Boyles, Chief Deputy Washington Bennett, and Chief of Police Leonard Floyd, of the Boaz Police Department, were shot and killed while attempting to serve a warrant at a farmhouse on a man for assault with intent to kill a neighbor.

As the three other deputies and another deputy reached the suspect's farmhouse, he came out with a rifle, firing rapidly at the officers as they were getting out of their car. All four returned fire, killing the man. As the man fell, his 16-year-old son grabbed the rifle. Firing rapidly from the hip, he brought down all four lawmen. Chief Floyd was shot in the back, never drawing his weapon. Sheriff Boyles was shot in his right hand, shattering the butt of of his gun and then fatally struck in his side, killing him instantly. Chief Deputy Bennett shot through the left temple, the bullet exiting his right jaw, managed to get the seriously wounded deputy into the car, and drove into Boaz, sounding the alarm. Chief Deputy Bennett died in a hospital three hours later.

The boy and two men in the home were arrested and charged with three counts of murder. The wounded deputy said shots not only came from the youth, but also from two windows. Yet charges against the two men were dropped. Only the youth was tried for murder. Over the next two years, four trials ended with hung juries. Just as the fifth trial was about to begin, a plea bargain resulted in a 10-year sentence. He was paroled on December 24, 1957.

Sheriff Boyles had just been elected to his third term as sheriff of the Marshall County Sheriff's Office and served in law enforcement for 20 years. He was survived by his wife, two daughters, and a grandson.