5 Utah Corrections officers killed in past century

Utah Department of Corrections Sgt. Stephen Anderson is just the fifth Utah Corrections officer killed in the line of duty in more than 100 years. His name will soon be added to the more than 120 others on the Utah Law Enforcement Officers' Memorial.

Anderson is the first Department of Corrections officer killed in the line of duty since Lt. Fred House, who was fatally shot in the 1988 infamous Singer-Swapp standoff.

Before that, Don Wagstaff, a Utah State Prison guard, was beaten to death at the prison Dec. 23, 1970. That was another incident in which prisoners escaped immediately following the murder but were found a short time later.

The only other Utah State Corrections officer killed in the line of duty in the modern era was Edwin Fisher, who was killed by an inmate June 1, 1955.

In 1876, Matthew Burgher, warden of the Utah Territorial Prison, was beaten to death during an escape attempt. Although the prisoners were immediately recaptured, they escaped again three months later and were never found.

The last Utah law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty was Uintah County Sheriff's detective Kevin Orr, who died in a helicopter crash during a search and rescue operation Nov. 22, 2006.

Garfield County Sheriff's deputy David Jones, 44, was the last Utah officer shot in the line of duty on Jan. 26, 2002. Jones was shot after making what was a seemingly routine traffic stop for a man suspected of drunken driving.

Since 1970, 48 Utah law enforcers have been killed while serving the community. Seventeen of those officers died as a result of gunshot wounds, according to the Utah Peace Officers Association. Those shooting deaths included two officers that were killed in accidental shootings.

Since 1970, other officers have been killed in traffic accidents, fires, an industrial accident and at least one fall.

Among those listed on the Officers' Memorial is Salt Lake City police officer James Cawley, who was killed while serving in Iraq in 2003.

One of the most deadly periods in Utah law enforcement history occurred over eight days in November 1913 when five officers were killed, including Bingham City Police Chief J.W. "Billy" Grant.

Officers were in pursuit of Rafael Lopez, who shot and killed another man because of a dispute over a girl at a dance hall. Hiding in an irrigation ditch, Lopez ambushed and killed Grant and two deputies. Several days later, Lopez again surprised two deputies trying to track him down and shot and killed them.

Lopez was never captured.

---

E-mail: preavy@desnews.com