Today, we remember South Carolina Alcoholic Beverage Control Agent Garnett Edward “Dick” Dabney.
On this date in 1968, Agent Garnett Dabney was shot and killed while making a raid at a grocery store near Lake Wylie, South Carolina. He and three other agents were watching the store for suspected sales of alcohol on Sundays. After observing two alcohol deliveries, the agents raided the store.
As the unarmed agents took inventory of the seized alcohol, the store owner opened fire with a .32 caliber handgun. Agent Dabney was struck twice in the back and once in the arm. A second agent was critically wounded. The suspect fled but was arrested shortly afterward.
Agent Dabney was a U.S. Army veteran of WWII. He had served with the South Carolina Alcoholic Beverage Control for four years and had previously served with the Rock Hill Police Department for 14 years. He was survived by his wife, daughter, and four sons.
