Cleatus L. Phillips

Deputy Sheriff Cleatus Phillips was shot and killed when he and the sheriff went to a home to question a man about allegations that he had abused his girlfriend. Around 10:30 a.m., Deputy Phillips and the sheriff borrowed a car that the man would not recognize and drove to the home in the early morning. As Deputy Phillips stepped onto the back porch of the home, the suspect shot him in the face, killing him. The suspect was arrested a short time later after a standoff. He was convicted of Deputy Phillips' murder and sent to prison for 60 years. Deputy Phillips had served with the New Madrid County Sheriff's Office for 12 years.