Deputy U.S. Marshal W. D. Kellett

W. D. Kellett

Deputy Marshal W.D. Kellett was shot and killed from ambush while escorting a prisoner to jail in Walker County, Georgia.

The prisoner had been arrested on an outstanding warrant related to moonshining. They were crossing Lookout Mountain to return to Summerville when Deputy Marshal Kellett was ambushed as they crossed Little River, near the Georgia - Alabama state line. He suffered a non fatal wound by a shotgun before being shot in the back with a .44 caliber rifle.

An investigation determined that Deputy Marshal Kellett had been ambushed by a man whom he had arrested 10 years earlier while serving as sheriff of Chattooga County, Georgia. The father of the man named on the warrant had notified Deputy Marshal Kellett that his son would turn himself in in order to lure him to Lookout Mountain. The man seeking revenge who fired the shot that killed him was arrested, convicted of murder, and sentenced to death.

Deputy Marshal Kellett had served as with the United States Marshals Service for five months and had previously served in law enforcement for at least 10 years. He was survived by his wife.