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Narcotics Agent Killed, 3 Troopers Wounded in Mississippi Standoff

A Mississippi state narcotics agent was killed and three highway patrol troopers were wounded over the weekend in a shootout in Tishomingo County.

February 22, 2016
Narcotics Agent Killed, 3 Troopers Wounded in Mississippi Standoff

Mississippi Narcotics Agent James Lee Tartt was killed in the Saturday gunfight. He was a 22-year law enforcement veteran. (Photo: Facebook)

1 min to read



A Mississippi state narcotics agent was killed and three highway patrol troopers were wounded over the weekend in a shootout in Tishomingo County.

The incident began with a call about a domestic dispute at the home near the town of Iuka.

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When officers arrived on the scene an armed man barricaded himself in the home with a woman and child.

After a six-hour standoff, officers made entry into the house. A gunfight ensued. Narcotics agent James Lee Tartt, 44, was killed, and three other officers were wounded.

The suspected gunman Charles Lee Lambert, 45, was killed.

Trooper Trea Staples was wounded in the Saturday gunfight.


Wounded were troopers Trea Staples, Bubba Holifield, and Deandrea Dixon. According to statements on the Mississippi Highway Patrol Facebook page, all three officers are recovering.

Troopers Deandrea Dixon (left) and Bubba Holifield are recovering from their wounds. (Photo: Facebook)


Tartt was a 22-year law enforcement veteran and had been a narcotics agent since September 2000, according to an Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics statement. His funeral is scheduled for Tuesday, WDAM TV reports.

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