The Murder Of Chief Deputy Bristol Taylor

Chief Deputy Bristol Taylor Photo by The Taylor Family

On Friday, November 23, 1973, Knott County Kentucky Chief Deputy Bristol Taylor was shot and killed while responding to a call about a drunk and disorderly man at the Blue Star Restaurant in Mousie, Kentucky. As he and another deputy, Herman Gibson, approached the shooter's vehicle the man, who was later identified as Marvin Gibson, opened fire on them with a .357 caliber revolver.  He shot Chief Deputy Taylor four times. The other deputy was shot once and wounded.  In a subsequent trial, the shooter was only convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 16 years in prison.  Chief Deputy Taylor was a U.S. Army veteran and had served with the Knott County Sheriff's Department for four years. He was survived by his wife Fern and four children, Tony, Deronda, Mickey, and Gary.  He was only twenty-nine years old and had been the Chief Deputy Sheriff in Knott County about four years.  He was buried in the Taylor Family Cemetery on Branham's Creek Road in Knott County.  

Marvin Gibson was able to win a change of venue to Pike County Circuit Court in Pikeville, Kentucky.  The trial was under the jurisdiction of Pike Circuit Judge E. N. Venters. During the brief trial in 1974, Marvin Gibson admitted to the crime. He was convicted of manslaughter in Taylor’s death and of wounding Herman Gibson. He was sentenced to a total of 16 years in prison by Judge E.N. Venters.

Chief Deputy Bristol Taylor & Family Photo by Troublesome Creek Times

Due to a complex schedule, I have not searched either newspaper or court records from the time of the murder and trial of the shooter, but I remember the shooting and sentencing of the killer.  The fact that the killer was only convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to only sixteen years after having killed a deputy and wounding another is a travesty of the highest order.  In today's world, most killers of police officers all across the country receive life sentences without the possibility of parole.  I will pursue the newspaper coverage of this incident and the trial proceedings and bring this post more up to date in the near future.  With Kentucky Parole Board standards at the time, it is highly likely that the killer was out of prison before Chief Deputy Taylor's youngest child was legally an adult.  

In 2012, based on efforts by State Representative John Short, the Kentucky General Asembly passed a resolution to name Kentucky 1393, Branham's Creek Road where the family cemetery is located, the  Deputy Bristol Taylor Memorial Highway. The ceremony to dedicate the highway was held on Friday, June 22, 2012, near the Taylor Cemetery, where Bristol Taylor is buried. The ceremony was open to the public and was attended by numerous public officials, family members, and law enforcement officers.  The ceremony began with the Presentation of Colors by Knott County DAV Chapter 171 with Arthur Mullins acting as their Commander. Kyra Short sang the National Anthem. Pastor McCoy Taylor held prayer and State Rep. John Short spoke and presented the formal declaration from the state legislature to the Taylor Family. Bristol Taylor’s sons Mickey and Tony spoke on behalf of the family.  The family unveiled the sign designating the highway as the Deputy Bristol Taylor Memorial Highway. A crew from Highway District 12 installed signs at the intersection of Ky. 899 and Ky. 1393 and at the intersection of Ky. 1393 and Ky. 582.

Bristol Taylor had been born to Everett and Mattie Short Taylor on March 17, 1944. He served in the U.S. Army and the U.S. Army Reserves from 1960- 1966, including a tour of duty in France. When Taulbee Pratt was elected Knott County Sheriff in 1969, he appointed Taylor chief deputy. He served in that capacity until his death.  While many law enforcement and judicial practices were markedly different in 1973, than they are today, it is unconscionable that a competent judge and jury could have only convicted the shooter of the lesser charge of manslaughter in what was a cold blooded murder and attempted murder.  The designation of a minor country road in honor of Chief Deputy Bristol Taylor was a commendable but less than sufficient act in light of his proven dedication to serve his country and community over an extended period both in the military and law enforcement.  Chief Deputy Bristol Taylor deserves more to be done in his honor.  

Some More Reflections On Gun Control, The Gun Culture, And The Underground Economy

Today, January 8, 2013, I had two brief encounters less than an hour apart which showed me a great deal about the gun culture in both America and Appalachia and also about the underground economy and how deeply it is involved in the sale and transport of guns all across the country.  It is also significant that these encounters happened on the second anniversary of the shooting in Arizona which severely wounded former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and killed six others.  Giffords and her husband also announced ongoing efforts with their non-profit corporation Americans For Responsible Solutions to raise money and take part in the effort to bring about changes in American gun laws.

I was in a business meeting with an individual who asked me if I ever get guns in my practice as an auctioneer.  He loves to buy and collect guns and made the statement that he never sells a gun if he buys it unless he finds a "better one just like it".  I do not sell guns as a part of my practice as an auctioneer unless I know that I am in strict compliance with federal law and told the man so. Here is a link to great article about federal law and how it applys to auctioneers . A few minutes later I left that meeting and drove about 6 miles down the road where I saw two people I know selling merchandise by the side of the road which is common today all across Appalachia.  I stopped to talk to the two and actually bought an item from one of them, a "smalls box", to be used in my practice to display small, valuable items.  The man had one single shot 12 gauge shotgun displayed on the ground outside his van.  I picked it up, asked the price, and talked about it briefly.  The man then said "I've got a whole van full of guns if you want to look at them." Then he turned, opened the back door of his van and showed me more than a dozen guns of all shapes, sizes, and descriptions including several automatic weapons.  He also made a statement that he had more at his home for sale.  But what was most significant about this encounter is that only a few months ago this man's brother was sentenced to life without parole for killing the man's daughter and son-in-law in the presence of four of their children.  The man who was selling the guns is now attempting to earn money to raise his six orphaned grandchildren whose parents died by gunfire in the presence of most of those children.  This encounter obviously has a lot to say about the gun culture in general, attitudes about guns in this family and about how the underground economy plays a significant role in the sale, transport, and use of guns all across the country.  It is also very significant that the person I was dealing with in the earlier business meeting was a licensed professional and a key player in the investigation of the murder and the burial of the childrens parents. 

Gun use and gun ownership have become so widespread in this region and the country as a whole that this man apparently sees nothing wrong in the continued presence of large numbers of guns in the home in which he is raising grandchildren who have been orphaned and traumatized by the murder of their parents in the presence of most of the children.  Admittedly, this man is poorly educated and of what I would believe is low normal intelligence based on my knowledge of him and my training and experience as a mental health professional.  But, I have no doubt that his intelligence is high enough to understand at least the basic implications of such a trauma on the children. 

I have known about the underground economy most of my life since I grew up in a country store, sold door to door for years, and now work as a self-employed auctioneer in Kentucky and Indiana.  All across the country, hundreds of thousands of people make at least part of their living from the underground economy, that part of the overall economy which functions outside the normal bounds of taxation and regulation such as yard sales, flea markets, illegal auctions, gambling, prostitution, drug dealing, and other forms of crime. A relatively good discussion of the underground economy can be found here: What Is The Underground Economy? .  Gun sales to shadow buyers is a very large part of the underground economy and generally operates totally outside the ability of law enforcement or taxation agencies to measure, monitor, or control it.  Anyone with any kind of criminal record, criminal intent, mental condition or combination of the three can go to the average gun show,  flea market, or roadside sale and find hundreds of guns for sale for cash without a single question being asked. Here is link to a somewhat dated, but very well researched and written article about guns and the underground economy . The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms attempts to intervene in at least a portion of these illegal sales, primarily bulk sales, but is generally far too overloaded to effectively control the sale and transport of guns in this manner. 

The underground economy, especially as it relates to criminal enterprises, moves and sells hundreds of thousands of guns every year in this country.  A large portion of these sales are facilitated by gangs and criminal syndicates and for years it has been common for major northeastern groups to buy guns in states with little or no state regulation and transport them to cities along the eastern seaboard for sale on the street.  Untold millions of dollars of guns are transported and sold in this manner.  This is one of the primary areas in which stricter gun control laws, better regulation, and improved funding for the ATF and other law enforcement agencies could stop, or at least slow, the flow of guns to criminals and criminal groups. 

My encounters with these two men on the second anniversary of the Tucson mass murder was significant to me in my reactions to the underground economy, the gun culture, and the need for strict gun control laws and adequate funding for the enforcement of those laws.  I hope it is to you also.