Two-time NRA Precision Pistol Champion and holder of 10 National Police Pistol Championship titles, Philip Hemphill, has passed away.
Hemphill, who retired from the Mississippi Highway Patrol as a captain in 2011 after a 30-year career, was a longtime fixture as a firearms instructor at the state’s largest police academy, MLEOTA in Pearl. During that time, he proved legendary at Police Pistol events, winning several consecutive national championships, typically competing against other instructors from around the country.
Hemphill notably was the first to win both the NPSC and the police title at NRA’s National Matches at Camp Perry in conventional pistol. He was named the NRA’s Officer of the Year in 2007, among other honors.
After he hung up his badge, Hemphill continued working as an instructor for another decade while competing for Team Zero/ Lapua, Rock River, and AimPoint.
Hemphill passed on Oct. 12, 2023, at his home in Meridian.
I met Capt. Hemphill on my two trips through MLEOTA in the early 2000s. He was a hell of a guy. We are diminished.