On May 8, 1989, a routine traffic stop on Main Street in Columbia, Mississippi, turned deadly when Patrolman Billy Doyle Patterson, 49, exchanged gunfire with a man who had reportedly expressed an intent to kill the first officer he encountered. Patterson, a 12-year veteran of the Columbia Police Department and a United States Navy veteran who served in Vietnam, called for backup; Patrolman Wayne Grant Henebry, 36, arrived to assist. Both officers were shot and killed in the confrontation. The suspect used a shotgun and was on parole for two other murders.

After the shooting the suspect fled to his wife’s home intending to kill her, but his son fatally shot his father while protecting his mother. Patterson was survived by his wife and four children and was remembered by the community for his service. Does anyone have memories of Patrolman Patterson or details about that day that could add to the record?