Weakley County Sheriff Terry McDade said Deputy Derrick Bonham was the type of person you wanted to hire.
Sheriff McDade made the comments Friday morning at a press conference following the shooting death of Deputy Bonham earlier that morning.
Deputy Bonham was after responding to assist Martin Police, who were called to possible shots fired at the Days Inn just before 3:00 in the morning.
The 38 year old Bonham was shot by the suspect, after seeing a vehicle matching the description in the nearby parking lot of Pockets Shell.
Sheriff McDade said Deputy Bonham was going to have conversation with the woman, when he was shot and fell to the ground.
She then got out of the vehicle and shot again.
Bonham was transported to Volunteer Community Hospital, where the Sheriff said staff members “worked harder on him than anybody I have ever seen worked on”.
Sheriff McDade called the incident a “horrific, intentional killing”, and said he personally hoped for the death penalty.
He said the department was “devastated”, calling Bonham a “kind, quiet, humble person who never bothered anybody”.
The suspect in the shooting, who lived outside of Tennessee, was apprehended and was taken to a detention center outside of Weakley County.
