Suspicious Activity

Lima Police Officer William Brown had driven through the intersection of Robb and Cole thousands of times in his 16 years working for the Lima Police Department. On a cold Saturday night in 1974 something was different. Something was wrong at the Certified Oil Station. Piper Jones, one of the workers at the time stated, "There is no doubt in my mind that he [Officer Brown] realized something was wrong and that was why he came into the station." As he approached the Certified Oil Station Officer Brown could never have realized that his life was about to end in a hail of gunfire.

"I could hear the bullets whizzing past my head"

As Officer Brown approached the station, one of the two attendants, Piper Jones, was laying on the floor after being thrown down by a masked robber. "When he [the robber] came into the store we thought is was a joke." Jones said. "When I laughed at him [the robber] he grabbed me by the hair and threw me to the floor." As Officer Brown approached the station the masked robber told Jones to get up. He instructed both workers to tell the policeman "Everything was okay." When Officer Brown came in the workers did as the masked robber told them. 16 years on the police force told Officer Brown something was wrong. Officer Brown responded by saying, "It doesn't look that way to me." He then asked the masked robber to remove his ski mask. As the robber began removing his gloves and mask Officer Brown briefly looked away, likely surveying the shop. The masked robber would then pull a gun out of his pocket and fire four bullets at point blank range into Officer Brown. Jones, who suffers hearing loss to this very day from the incident says, "I could hear the bullets whizzing past my head." Officer Brown would fall to the floor critically wounded. The robber would then casually walk over Officer Brown walk out the door and run into the woods.

"I've been hit in a robbery at Cole and Robb…I think it's bad"

As the clerks chased after the robber Officer Brown somehow managed the get up off the floor of the gas station and stumbled to his cruiser. In a weak voice he radioed to his fellow officers, "I've been hit in a robbery at Cole and Robb…I think it's bad." It was bad. One bullet went through Officer Brown's chin and into his throat. Two bullets went through his right arm and into his chest. One bullet lodged in his left forearm. Piper Jones came back after he was unable to chase after the robber. He tried to help Officer Brown by putting shop rags on his wounds to stop the bleeding. Jones then went in to call an ambulance. By the time he returned two police officers were on the scene trying to save Officer Brown. The first patrolman on the scene stated. "We gave Bill mouth to mouth resuscitation and applied heart massage until the ambulance arrived, but it was apparent he was gone when it [the ambulance] got there." While Officer Brown was struggling for his last breath a thug by the name of Ross Caudill was ready to party on a Saturday night.

No Conscience

As Officer Brown lay dying on the floor of the Certified Oil Station, Ross Caudill calmly stepped over his body and dashed out the door. He went to a friend's house and watched television and played a hockey game. He drank beer and ate pizza. On Monday Caudill went back to school. He likely noticed the Brown children were all absent. They were mourning the loss of her father.

In the days following the robbery/ murder Caudill worked hard to distribute the $1300 he stole after he murdered Officer Brown. He distributed all but $200, which he used to buy new tires. The same tires he told the clerk at the auto parts store he would be back to buy two days before the robbery when he killed Officer Brown. The party would end when Caudill's own stepfather would see the plea on the news to help find Officer Brown's killer. He checked his gun collection and realized one gun had been fired and four bullets were missing. He called police and Ross Caudill was arrested and charged with the murder of Officer William Brown. The evidence was ovewhelming and Caudill pled guilty to the murder of Officer Brown. He was sentenced to life in prison.

Be Good Stay Out of Trouble

When Lima Police Officer William Brown was murdered seven children lost their father and a wife lost her devoted husband. The community of Lima lost one of their finest officers. Officer Brown was especially dedicated to the children of Lima. He was well known for his saying "Be good and stay out of trouble". Officer Brown's commitment to children was never more evident than when the parents of a trouble youth called Officer Brown to help them with their son. Officer Brown took the troubled young man under his wing and helped him turn his life around. That young man was so inspired by Officer Brown he eventually became a police officer. One has to wonder how many childrens lives would have been changed for the better in the last 35 years had Ross Caudill not murdered Police Officer William Brown.

No Accountability. No Remorse. No Parole

In 1974, shortly after Officer Brown was murdered, his daughter Deb Brown went to the jail to ask Caudill why he murdered her father. "When I asked him he turned his back to me." Officer Brown's daughter says today. "He refused to say a word." Since that time Caudill has never taken responsibly for his actions. He has blamed everyone for his incarceration, including the court system, the gas station attendants and even the Brown family for opposing his release. Not one time in 35 years has Caudill accepted responsibility for the murder of Officer Brown.

Caudill has also never expressed remorse for the murder of Officer Brown. He has sent not one letter to Officer Brown's family saying he is sorry for the crime. He has never made any statement to anyone saying he is sorry for killing Officer Brown.

Parole is a privilege not a right. Two of the major points toward reform is taking responsibility for your actions and expressing remorse for your crime. Ross Caudill has done neither of these two tasks. Caudill is a cold-blooded killer. He is an angry man who still blames everyone but himself for the murder of Officer Brown. He believes to this very day that he is the victim. Paroling Ross Caudill would be an injustice to every law enforcement officer both past and present. Caudill remains a heartless violent individual and placing Ross Caudill on the streets would endanger every citizen that comes into contact with him. Releasing Ross Caudill would be a deadly mistake.