Headland police officer shot dead; deputy seriously injured

HENRY COUNTY - A Headland police officer is dead and a Henry County Sheriff’s deputy was in critical condition late Friday night after they were shot Friday evening by a Granberry’s Crossroads resident.

Dexter Hammond, a Headland officer and former Midland City police chief, was fatally shot by 53-year-old Fred Davis outside Davis’ home at 5501 County Road 55, according to Alabama State Troopers Public Information Officer Kevin Cook.

The Henry County Sheriff’s Department received an emergency call at 4:55 p.m. reporting that Davis was firing a weapon outside his trailer, and Hammond responded just a few minutes later.

Davis shot Hammond, then fired at several deputies as they arrived on the scene. In the process, he shot deputy Ted Yost, seriously injuring him.

According to Cook, Davis was then killed by “other responding officers,” and the motive for his shootings is still unknown.

“It’s way too early to determine a motive, if there even was a motive,” Cook said. “We are in the infancy stages of the investigation.”

Law enforcement agencies from around the Wiregrass responded quickly to the scene, including sheriff departments from Houston and Henry counties and police departments from Abbeville, Dothan, Headland and Midland City, just to name a few.

“Several, several officers responded,” Cook said. “We are a very tight-knit family. When you mess with one of us, you mess with all of us.”

Steve Pearce, Southeast Alabama Medical Center media relations coordinator, said Yost was in critical condition as of 10:20 p.m. Friday night, having already been in surgery.

Hammond served as Midland City’s police chief for years until leaving the position in November.

Just last month, Michael McLendon’s shooting spree in Kinston, Samson and Geneva left 10 victims dead and an entire area shaken.

“Anytime you have a shooting of this magnitude, it’s real shocking, but it’s getting closer in time,” Cook said. “It’s getting more frequent, it seems.”

The Dothan Police Department, Houston County Sheriff’s Department and Alabama Bureau of Investigation are handling the crime scene and were still trying to determine motive and the weapons used in the crime as of late Friday night.