Sheriff Robert Gatlin
Walton County Sheriff’s Office, Florida
End of Watch Thursday, November 12, 1942
He and his family moved to Walton County, Florida in 1935. Defuniak Springs, 1935 population 2524, was a small, charming city, but it was a metropolis compared to Kinston, which had a 1935 population of less than 400 hundred on a good day.
Maybe it was his strong, steady appearance. Maybe it was because he was a newcomer and the community felt that was needed. Regardless of the reason, Bob threw his hat in the ring for Sheriff in 1940. Shortly after he won the election, Sheriff Robert Gatlin took over on Tuesday morning, January 7, 1941.
There was no doubt that Sheriff Robert Gatlin had his deputies’ backs. When Governor Spressard Holland directed Gatlin to fire one of his deputies six months earlier, the sheriff threatened to quit.
During the middle of the day on Thursday, November 12, 1942, Sheriff Gatlin and his only deputy, Curtis Miller, went to the home of the suspect to serve a search warrant for possessing illegal whisky. In a subsequent fight, the suspect shot the sheriff twice in the chest and beat the deputy severely. The sheriff died immediately.
The incident left Walton county with no law enforcement, so the governor sent the director of the Florida Highway Patrol to preserve order and to find the killer. 36 hours later, the suspect was caught, a new sheriff was named, and order was restored to the county. But…Sheriff Gatlin did his part. Rest in peace, Sir.
