Roll of Honor
Incident
Constable Samuel Tobias succumbed to injuries sustained seven days earlier when he encountered two horse thieves he had been searching for.
Constable Tobias and three other men had been posted at a railroad causeway in an attempt to intercept two notorious horse thieves who had just escaped from the state prison farm. At daybreak, the officers split up and Constable Tobias started walking across the causeway when he encountered the two. Before he was able to react the men shot him in the head. Constable Tobias fell and dropped his gun in the swampy water below.
The men then left him for dead. Despite being critically injured, Constable Tobias was able to crawl approximately one mile to the switch shack on the railroad. When he did not arrive at home, his family went looking for him and found him there. He died as a result of his head injuries five days later.
The following day a posse went after the killers; although it unknown what happened to the men they were never seen again.
Constable Tobias and three other men had been posted at a railroad causeway in an attempt to intercept two notorious horse thieves who had just escaped from the state prison farm. At daybreak, the officers split up and Constable Tobias started walking across the causeway when he encountered the two. Before he was able to react the men shot him in the head. Constable Tobias fell and dropped his gun in the swampy water below.
The men then left him for dead. Despite being critically injured, Constable Tobias was able to crawl approximately one mile to the switch shack on the railroad. When he did not arrive at home, his family went looking for him and found him there. He died as a result of his head injuries five days later.
No passage of time will ever erase your service and sacrifice by your fellow law enforcement.
Detective Cpl/3 Steven Rizzo Delaware State Police (Retired) September 2nd, 2020
In Our Keeping
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BO-US-SC-9E6C9315- Stewardship
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- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
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Constable Tobias served with the Clarendon County Magistrate's Office.
Thank you for your service to the Manning community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Constable Samuel Thomas Tobias is one of 17,623 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 54.2% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In SC, 271 of 438 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 61.9% of this state's fallen. That is 7.7 percentage points above the national rate of 54.2%.
National Cause Distribution
How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Samuel Thomas Tobias's cause is highlighted.
How Samuel Thomas Tobias Compares
When Felonious Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Samuel Thomas Tobias is highlighted in Sep.
Weapons Used Against Officers
Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. Samuel Thomas Tobias was killed by blunt object.