Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Area law enforcement officials from around the county and state gathered to mourn and honor the life of Preble County Sheriff’s Deputy Joshua Hamilton at services held Saturday, Dec. 23. Hamilton, 34, of Eldorado, was one of two victims in a deadly crash on Monday, Dec 18, while he was on duty.
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eddie Mowen Jr. | The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Area law enforcement officials from around the county and state gathered to mourn and honor the life of Preble County Sheriff’s Deputy Joshua Hamilton at services held Saturday, Dec. 23.
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
Eric Deeter | For The Register-Herald
PREBLE COUNTY — Area law enforcement officials from around the county and state gathered to mourn and honor the life of Preble County Sheriff’s Deputy Joshua Hamilton at services held Saturday, Dec. 23.
Hamilton, 34, of Eldorado, was one of two victims in a deadly crash on Monday, Dec 18, while he was on duty.
Services for the second victim, Michael Gayhart II, 36, of West Elkton, had not been announced at press time.
Deputy Hamilton was also a U.S. Navy veteran, serving from 2009-2015 aboard the USS Nimitz. He was a Naval reservist from 2015 to 2023, and was also enlisted in the U.S. Army National Guard, serving from January 2023 until his death. He began his service at the Preble County Sheriff’s Office in May 2022, and was also a police officer for Premier Health Network.
Along with family and friends, a large contingency of law enforcement and public safety personnel gathered at the Pentecostal Tabernacle in Richmond, Indiana for Hamilton’s funeral service on Saturday. Traffic was stopped and roads closed for a time as the motorcade returned to Ohio, passing by the Preble County Sheriff’s Office one last time on its way to Fairview Cemetery in Gratis where Deputy Hamilton was laid to rest.
Hamilton was traveling southbound on Ohio 503 in a marked PCSO 2018 Ford Explorer, while Gayhart II was traveling northbound, last Monday when the vehicles collided in the head-on crash. The investigation into the crash by the Ohio State Highway Patrol continued at press time. An OSP spokesperson on Friday said fatal crash investigations take time to complete and no timeline could be given as to when additional information would be available.
Reach Eddie Mowen Jr. at 937-683-4061 and follow on X @emowenjr.
