Bobby Gene Spencer, 58, was ambushed and shot dead outside the Shannon, Mississippi police department on the morning of January 18, 1997. A Korean War veteran and a 20-year law enforcement professional who had risen to chief of police, Spencer was struck by a high-powered rifle about 4:45 a.m. as he was returning to the station at the end of his shift. The attacker lay in wait in darkness; two of his officers found him shortly afterward and initially thought he had suffered a heart attack until further examination revealed the gunshot.

No suspects have been publicly identified and no arrests have been announced. The motive for the targeted killing has not been established, and the case remains open and unsolved. If anyone has information about that January morning in Shannon or about Chief Spencer’s movements before he entered the building, please come forward.