Who killed Billy the Kid at Fort Sumner, New Mexico, in 1881?

Pat Garrett killed Billy the Kid at Fort Sumner, New Mexico, in 1881.

Garrett was a former buffalo hunter and lawman who became sheriff of Lincoln County, New Mexico. He pursued Billy the Kid, whose recorded name was Henry McCarty and who also used the name William H. Bonney.

On July 14, 1881, Garrett entered the home of Pete Maxwell at Fort Sumner while searching for the fugitive. Billy the Kid arrived unexpectedly and asked a question in Spanish. Garrett shot him, and the outlaw died inside the house.

The event became one of the best-known episodes of the Old West. Films and books often portray the killing differently, but the historical account identifies Garrett as the shooter. Billy the Kid was only 21 or 22 years old, depending on the disputed date of his birth.