Alabama sheriff shot and killed over loud music, witnesses and police say

Marty Roney | Montgomery Advertiser

Show Caption Hide Caption What we know: Lowndes County Sheriff John Williams killed Saturday Lowndes County Sheriff "Big John" Williams was shot and killed Saturday. Here's what we know.

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – An Alabama sheriff was shot and killed Saturday night and law enforcement apprehended the suspect after a nearly four-hour search.

Lowndes County Sheriff John Williams' death was confirmed by a fellow sheriff, Derrick Cunningham of Montgomery County.

Williams was fatally shot when he approached a truck because the music was loud, and he was asking an occupant of the pickup to turn it down, according to law enforcement and an eyewitness.

About 8:15 p.m. Saturday, Williams was shot at aconvenience store. Law enforcement apprehended the suspect William Chase Johnson when he walked up to the shooting scene at about 12:05 a.m. Sunday with a firearm in his hand and was taken into custody.

Johnson has been charged with murder, according to jail records. No bond has been set.

'I don't understand it': The 'senseless' murder of Sheriff 'Big John' Williams has stunned Lowndes County, Alabama

Williams approached the truck Johnson was driving and asked him why his music was so loud. That's when Johnson allegedly shot Williams once in the head.

Charles Benson said he witnessed it all.

"Right there at Pump 8," Benson said, standing in front of the store with a styrofoam container of breakfast he had just bought from the food counter inside. "Big John comes up and asks the young man about the loud music, just like he has done hundreds of times before. Big John don't take no foolishness.

"That's when he got shot. I don't understand it. The sheriff is gone over loud music? It just don't seem right."

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency is handling the investigation. Johnson was not taken to Lowndes County jail. Instead he was being held in Elmore County, authorities confirm.

"I'm saddened to hear about Sheriff Big John Williams, who was tragically killed this evening in the line of duty. Through his service to our country in the United States Marine Corps and his many years working in law enforcement, he dedicated his life to keeping other people safe," Gov. Kay Ivey said in a release Saturday night. "He will be remembered as a consummate professional and pillar of his community. I offer my prayers and deepest sympathies to his family and to the men and women of the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Department.

Williams is a beloved member of the Lowndes County community and well-known in law enforcement circles in the state.

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"This is a sad time for Lowndes County and the state of Alabama," said Sgt. Steve Jarrett, commander of the Montgomery Alabama State Troopers' post. He held a news conference on the scene about 11:20 p.m. Saturday. "Big John was a wonderful man. If you ever met him you would never forget him. We ask for your prayers for his family and for the Lowndes County Sheriff's Department."

Jarrett declined to offer many specifics on what happened, citing the ongoing nature of the investigation. Before Johnson was taken into custody, Jarrett urged residents not to approach Johnson if he was spotted.

Williams was born and raised in Lowndes County and graduated from Calhoun High School in 1976. Because of his height, he was known as "Big John."

He "always wanted to make a difference in his community and felt there was no better way to help his community than to protect and serve them in law enforcement," according to the Lowndes County Sheriff's Office website.

From the scene where Lowndes County Sheriff John Williams was killed tonight pic.twitter.com/RIm1BzHS1d — Kirsten Fiscus (@KDFiscus) November 24, 2019

In 1978, he started volunteering as a reserve deputy, and for three years in the 1980s he was in the Hayneville Police Department until full-time work with the sheriff’s office.

In 1990, he was appointed to chief deputy and served in this capacity until leaving the department in 2009. In 2010, he won election to be sheriff and has held onto the role since.

Lowndes County in central Alabama in the Black Belt has about 11,000 people. The county is contiguous to Montgomery County. Hayneville is about 20 miles southwest of the city of Montgomery.

"We are deeply saddened by the great loss of Lowndes County Sheriff Big John," Montgomery County posted on its Facebook page. "He was a wonderful sheriff and an even more incredible man. To know him was to love him. His family, friends, and all of Lowndes County remain in our thoughts and prayers. Big John, you will be greatly missed."

I’m saddened to hear about Sheriff Big John Williams, who was tragically killed this evening in the line of duty. Through his service to our country in the @USMC and his many years working in law enforcement, he dedicated his life to keeping other people safe. (1/2) #alpolitics — Governor Kay Ivey (@GovernorKayIvey) November 24, 2019

He will be remembered as a consummate professional and pillar of his community. I offer my prayers and deepest sympathies to his family and to the men and women of the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Department. (2/2) #alpolitics — Governor Kay Ivey (@GovernorKayIvey) November 24, 2019

According to The Associated Press, more than 60 people gathered at the Lowndes County Courthouse to protest then-Gov. Bob Riley’s appointment in 2007 of a white law enforcement officer to replace the county’s deceased sheriff. At the time, the County Commission president said all five commissioners and other elected officials had recommended Williams for the position.

When Williams was chief deputy, he notably in 2000 was the arresting officer of Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, a 1960s black militant who was known as H. Rap Brown before converting to Islam, according to the AP. Al-Amin was wanted and later convicted in the fatal shooting of a Fulton County sheriff’s deputy in Atlanta in 2000.

“I know all Alabamians join me in passing along our condolences and prayers to Sheriff Williams’ family and to the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office,” Attorney General Steve Marshall said in a news release.

Contributing: Kirsten Fiscus