Marshal Lance was shot and killed answering a disturbance call.

On January 13, 1903, Marshal Lance and Deputy John Taylor arrived at a dance at Amanda Holder residence where two men had just arrived, were drunk and causing a disturbance. A fight broke out between the officers and the suspects. Marshal Lance was shot and killed instantly and Deputy Taylor was badly cut, stabbed in both the hip and shoulder. Deputy Taylor shot one of the two suspects in the shoulder as they escaped the house into the darkness. Suspects, Dolpheus and James Hill, fled the scene and remained at large. Interred: Saint Jude Cemetery, Monroe City, MO.