​While investigating a domestic complaint involving neighbors, Trooper First Class Mills was shot with a .38 caliber pistol. He fell to the ground and attempted to get his service revolver, when he was struck in the chest area with a bullet from a high-powered rifle. He died a short time later at Peninsula General Hospital. The incident occurred at a trailer site in Brookview, a small town next to Rhodesdale, MD, address of Rt. 1 -Box 35A, Rhodesdale.​