Constable Hamilton Dalton was shot and killed while attempting to serve a writ of execution at a home in West Terre Haute.

   After speaking to the man's wife at the front door of the residence, he approached the subject to advise him about the writ. When the man stated he could not pay his $38 grocery bill, Constable Dalton inquired about the ownership of a vehicle in the garage.

   The man demanded he leave his property before producing a revolver and shooting Constable Dalton in the right jaw. A passer-by saw the wounded constable in the front yard and transported him to Union Hospital in Terre Haute where he died.

   The 35-year-old offender was indicted for first-degree murder and was later sentenced to 2 to 21 years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter. The man had previously served a prison term for manslaughter of a man near Fontanet.

   Constable Dalton, from Larimer Hill and the appointed Sugar Creek Township constable, was widowed and survived by two sons and two daughters.

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This officer, discovered in 2019, has not been submitted for consideration as an eligible line of duty death to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund by the Vigo County Sheriff's Department.