Sheriff Paul Roy Vinson

Paul Roy Vinson

Sheriff Paul Vinson and Patrolman Gayle Holmes, of the Texas Department of Public Safety, were shot and killed while answering a disturbance call outside a rural store between Paducah and Guthrie.

While they were placing one man in the patrol car, another man stepped onto the porch of the store behind them and began firing. A third highway patrolman returned fire, but suffered no injury.

The suspect, 20, was taken into custody at a ranch about a mile away. He was later convicted of Sheriff Vinson's murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. He was denied parole on March 16, 2018. His next parole hearing is in January of 2023.

Sheriff Vinson was serving his second term. He was survived by his wife, two sons, and two daughters.