Sheriff Marion Louis Swords, St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office, Louisiana

Sheriff Marion Louis Swords

St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office, Louisiana

End of Watch Monday, July 17, 1916

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Marion Louis Swords

Sheriff Marion Swords was shot and killed while attempting to arrest a fugitive near Opelousas, Louisiana. Two deputized civilians who were assisting Sheriff Swords were seriously wounded.

The suspect was convicted of Sheriff Swords' murder and sentenced to death. He was executed by hanging on October 19, 1917.

Sheriff Swords had served with the agency for 16 years. He was survived by his wife and four children.

Bio

Age 59
Tour 16 years
Badge Not available

Incident Details

Cause Gunfire
Weapon Rifle; .44 caliber
Offender Executed in 1917

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Family lore holds that Sheriff Swords was a lively fellow with creative notions of law enforcement. Reportedly he once used bbq to persuade a miscreant to come down from a pecan tree where he was "hiding" out. A drinking man, he regarded laws against "blind tigering" as foolish and made it a practice to ignore them. But when a real bad man, such as Eli Carriere who shot him, was afoot, the Sheriff was relentless. A hundred years later we're proud of him.

David Swords
Great grandson

August 31, 2023