Chief Hubert Bill Payne, 51, was killed in the line of duty on Monday, August 29, 1977. Payne had long served in law enforcement, including twenty years with the U.S. Military Police and eight years as Chief of Police for Dermott, Arkansas. He responded to a disturbance call and, while attempting to make an arrest, was overpowered when the suspect gained control of the chief’s service pistol and fatally shot him.

The suspect, described as a 26-year-old man, fled the scene in Chief Payne’s police car. Officers established a roadblock on U.S. 65; the suspect drove through it, and pursuing officers shot out the vehicle’s tires before taking him into custody. On April 27, 1978, he was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life without parole.

Did anyone in Dermott at the time have additional details about the disturbance that led to Chief Payne’s death?