Roll of Honor
Incident
Associate Warden Donald Gammons and Associate Warden James McPeters were killed in a military helicopter crash while searching for three escapees from the Turney Correction Center.
The helicopter was provided by Ft. Rucker, Alabama, for use in the search. The helicopter struck a power line during the search and crashed, killing the pilot and both wardens in Humphreys County around 4:30 p.m.
One of the escapees was killed, and the other two were recaptured.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-TN-236B9C27- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Warden Gammons gave the Tennessee Department of Correction 9 years.
Thank you for your service to the Nashville community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Warden Gammons.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Warden Donald G. Gammons is one of 10,088 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In TN, 191 of 769 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 24.8% of this state's fallen. That is 6.2 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At Tennessee Department of Correction, 3 of 14 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 21.4% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Donald G. Gammons's cause is highlighted.
How Donald G. Gammons Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Donald G. Gammons is highlighted in Jul.
Others Who Wore This Badge
13 officers from Tennessee Department of Correction are honored on badge.nw.
