Overview of The Arrest
This Park Predators episode recounts the 1980 killing of North Carolina wildlife officer Lloyd Mays in Northampton County and the complicated investigation that followed. What begins as a routine Thanksgiving-morning enforcement stop for illegal deer spotlighting quickly turns into a fatal confrontation, a multi-state manhunt, a murder trial, and ultimately a case that reshaped safety policies for wildlife officers.
What Happened
- On Thanksgiving Day, November 27, 1980, game warden Lloyd Mays failed to show up for a staff meeting in Northampton County, North Carolina.
- Searchers found his vehicle off a rural road and, nearby, his body hidden in brush.
- Mays had been shot in the chest with a shotgun and appeared to have been dragged and concealed after the killing.
- Authorities soon received a tip in Virginia about brothers Samuel Faison and Chester Faison, both linked to the shooting.
The Chase and Arrest
- Virginia police spotted Samuel Faison driving and attempted to stop him.
- A high-speed chase ended when his car crashed and flipped.
- Inside the vehicle, police found:
- Samuel alive
- Chester dead in the back seat
- Chester had a gunshot wound to the abdomen; investigators believed he was killed by Mays’ service revolver, not in the crash.
- Samuel was arrested, extradited to North Carolina, and initially charged with murder.
The State’s Theory vs. Samuel’s Version
Prosecution’s theory
- The Faison brothers were illegally deer hunting by jacklighting/spotlighting.
- Mays stopped them.
- A struggle followed, Mays was shot, and Samuel helped cover up the crime.
Samuel Faison’s defense
- Samuel claimed:
- Chester was the aggressor
- Chester shot Mays
- Samuel was trying to break up the fight
- He admitted afterward to:
- dragging/concealing Mays’ body
- taking money and a watch from Mays
- disposing of the revolver and shotgun
- Defense experts argued his post-crime behavior was a traumatic, “catastrophic” reaction.
Trial and Verdict
- The prosecution had difficulty proving who actually fired the fatal shot.
- Gunshot residue testing on Samuel was inconclusive.
- The state shifted its theory during trial to aiding and abetting second-degree murder rather than direct murder.
- After nine days of testimony, the jury deliberated just over an hour and returned not guilty.
- The judge had instructed jurors they could not convict Samuel of directly committing the murder under the charge presented.
Aftermath
- Samuel was later indicted on additional charges, including:
- larceny of a firearm
- concealment of a felony
- accessory after the fact to murder
- assault on an officer
- unauthorized use of a vehicle
- hunting-related misdemeanors
- After a long extradition battle, he eventually pleaded guilty to concealment of a felony in 1983 and was released for time served.
- In a later interview, Samuel said he regretted what happened and wished he had taken both men to the hospital instead of fleeing.
Legacy of Lloyd Mays
- Lloyd Mays’ death led to changes in North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission policy:
- officers were to work in pairs
- they were issued bulletproof vests
- they carried better flashlights
- they were equipped with shotguns
- Mays is memorialized at the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education alongside other commission officers killed in the line of duty.
Key Takeaways
- A routine wildlife enforcement stop escalated into a deadly encounter.
- The case hinged on conflicting accounts, weak physical evidence, and the difficulty of proving who fired the fatal shot.
- Even though Samuel Faison was acquitted of murder, the episode underscores the dangers faced by solo wildlife officers and the lasting policy changes that can follow a line-of-duty death.