Deputy Carlton Smith was killed on his first night of patrol as a solo officer. While making a routine traffic stop in the area which is now the Valley River Center off ramp, he was shot by Carl Cletus Bowles and Wilford Gray, both escaped convicts.

Carl Cletus Bowles escaped from Oregon State Penitentiary custody June of 1974 and was the focus of a huge manhunt in Eugene on June 14, 1974. He subsequently kidnapped a couple from South Eugene and later murdered them in Washington. He was recaptured and convicted of the homicides.

Deputy Smith left a widow, Margaret Perdue,  five sons, and a daughter. Randy Smith is currently a Lieutenant with the Lane County Sheriff's Office. Another son, Don Smith worked as a Eugene Police officer.