Federal prosecutors charged a Louisiana man with murder after authorities say he shot and killed a deputy U.S. marshal who was serving an arrest warrant, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Louisiana said Tuesday.
Clarence A. Frazier Jr., 48, of Alexandria, is charged with the murder of a federal officer and faces a maximum sentence of life in prison or the death penalty if convicted, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Officials said members of the U.S. Marshals Service and the Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office located Frazier at his residence on July 13 and obtained a search warrant related to a prior sexual battery charge. The federal criminal complaint says Frazier had failed to appear in state court on a charge of sexual battery of a person with infirmities.
The complaint, cited by authorities, says officers announced their presence and forced entry. Frazier then allegedly barricaded himself inside a bedroom and opened fire, striking Deputy U.S. Marshal Drew Hanson. After a standoff, Frazier was taken into custody and Hanson later died of his wounds, officials said.
Authorities identified the slain marshal as Drew Hanson, whom they described as a devoted husband, father and son. “Tragically, the defendant’s alleged actions claimed the life of a dedicated law enforcement officer who was simply doing his duty,” Acting U.S. Attorney Todd Blanche said in a statement. “The alleged perpetrator is now in custody and will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” Blanche said, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
