Constable Thomas Cummines was shot and killed while attempting to arrest a subject for illegally carrying concealed weapons.

   The subject had come to the area making numerous illegal arrests claiming to be a private detective. When confronted by Constable Cummines at a saloon in Birdseye, he was shot in the abdomen by the man with a revolver concealed in his coat sleeve.

   Constable Cummines was taken to a house nearby and died about a half-hour later.

   The suspect escaped into the woods but turned himself in the following week. He was later found guilty of voluntary manslaughter in a change of venue to Pike County, sentenced to two years in prison and discharged in 1888.

   Constable Cummines, from Jefferson Township, had been elected to one-year terms in office as the township constable. He was survived by his wife, five sons, three daughters, brother and father.

Historical Note Constables were created during the Indiana Territory and continued to exist after statehood in 1816. Depending on the time period, they were either appointed or elected to their positions at the township level with one- or four-year terms in office. Constables had police powers to make arrests with countywide jurisdiction. Since 2004, constables are only authorized by state law in Marion County townships having a small claims court where they are elected to four-year terms in office.

Read more on our research on Remembering Our Fallen Township Constables in our News Release.