Blockader Shot While Trying to Regain His Still. . . Clayton Smith, 21-Year-Old Moonshiner, Meets a Tragic End. . . Slayer is Exonerated
An effort to regain possession of his captured still Sunday resulted in the death of Clayton Smith, 21-year-old moonshiner of the Samarcand section. He was shot by Oscar Bailey, who had been deputized by his father, Esq. J.E. Bailey, a justice of the peace, to search him, when he offered resistance.
The Baileys had been summoned to the home of Causey Luck, where shooting occurred, to restrain Smith who threatened violence unless his still, which had been left there by Federal Officer Oscar Richardson, was returned to him. The deceased was said to have been under the influence of liquor, and Esq. Bailey, on learning of the trouble, went there with his son to place him under arrest. The shooting occurred about 9 o’clock Sunday night.
A coroner’s jury, impaneled by George O’Briant, exonerated young Bailey of all blame after examining all of the material witnesses. It found “that Clayton Smith came to his death as a result of a bullet wound in the left lower back inflicted during a scuffle between Oscar Bailey and the deceased, and with the evidence in hand we consider Oscar Bailey justifiable in his actions while attempting to arrest Clinton Smith.” The jury was composed of R.H. Query, Allen M. Monroe, Fulton Monroe, W.A. Dunn, W.M. McKenzie and J.L. Williams.
Caught at Still
Smith, along with another man, was arrested at a still on his place the Saturday before the tragedy by Officer Richardson. The still was broken up, and en route to the office of United States Commissioner N.B. Jones, at Jackson Springs, for the preliminary hearing, the outfit was left at the home of Mr. Luck, where it was locked in a corn crib. Esq. Jones found probably cause against Smith and bound him over to the next term of Federal court under a $500 bond, which he gave.
The next morning smith is alleged to have started drinking, and by dark he was alleged to have been considerably intoxicated. It was while in this condition, it was stated, that the deceased when at the house of Mr. Luck to regain, if possible, possession of his still.
When the demand for return of the still was made upon Mr. Luck, he refused; and when Smith insisted, he finally told him, in order to avoid trouble, that he would have to get the permission of Esq. Bailey, the local magistrate. Fulfilling his intention, he sent his son, Curtis Luck, after the magistrate.
Esq. Bailey, when told of the trouble, deputized his son, Oscar Bailey, to accompany him. When they reached the Luck home, they found Smith in the back yard. “Hold up your hands,” Esq. Bailey is said to have told Smith, and turning to his son, said: “Search him.”
It was while young Bailey was carrying out the order of his father when he says he was forced to shoot Smith in self defense, the deceased, it was declared, having drawn his gun when the deputized officer approached him. this gun, identified as the property of Smith, was found near the spot of the shooting the next morning.
Bailey Describes Killing
The killing was described by young Bailey in the testimony, as follows:
“I was at home and had just finished supper when I heard somebody shout. He seemed scared. I didn’t hear what was said on the front porch, but on going out I found Curtis telling my father, ‘he’s got a gun and he’s going to kill me if I don’t show him the still.’ I asked him who it was. Curtis said, ‘Clayton Smith is at the house, I think there is a bunch of them. I heard somebody down at the barn.’ He had his flashlight on, and on looking back to the rear, said somebody had ran after him.
“I got my gun, which is a German Luger. Father got his gun. I gave Curtis one and we started up the road. Curtis said, ‘we’ll have to hurry. There are no shells at home, and they haven’t a gun that will shoot.’
“When we got to the Luck home Mrs. Luck said ‘they are around there at the lumber pile.’ I was in front, a little to the right. Reaching the lumber pile, I turned the flashlight on. Clayton looked at me, turned to the right a little, and slipped his right hand to his coat. I told him to consider himself under arrest. I didn’t have my hands on him. Someone said, ‘hold up your hands.’ I saw his gun in his hands. He said ‘I guess not’ and started to raise his left hand.
“I grabbed his arms and raised them up. He missed his gun that time. I pulled down on his arms again. He raised up on it and called his ?? saying ‘stick ‘em up, Clayton.’ I knew he was going to get his gun. He was trying to get his gun out by the end of the barrel with his left hand and ??? snatched loose from me he grabbed the butt of his gun and on his left??? When he wheeled to the right ??? gun fired. He fell kinder on his face and stomach. I don’t know for sure which gun fired. When he fell to the right my father said: ‘What’s the matter, boy?’ I said ‘I reckon I shot him but I don’t remember pulling the trigger.’ I said, ‘look out he may shoot your yet.
Smith’s Gun Found
“I don’t know whether my fired or not. It reloads itself and throws out the empty shell. I don’t know how many shells I had in it. I couldn’t tell by looking at the barrel this morning whether it had been shot or not. When he fell no gun was found on his person.”
The gun found the next morning, which was alleged to have been Smith’s, had one empty chamber. Testifying on this phase of the shooting, Mr. Luck said:
Q. Did you find a gun on Clayton Smith after the shot was fired?
A. Not then, but found it this morning, about 30 steps from where he was shot. I think he threw it when he went down.
Q. what kind of gun did he have?
A. I don’t know, but I think it was a .32. There was one empty chamber in the gun.
Q. Did the empty shell show fresh shooting?
A. I couldn’t tell. It had been rained on.
From the front page of The Moore County News, Carthage, N.C., April 15, 1926
If you click on the following link to the online page you’ll see that a section of the page was too dark to read.
newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn92074101/1926-04-15/ed-1/seq-1/
