Roll of Honor
Incident
Special Agent Garland Fields was shot and killed during an investigation at the Lighthouse Cafe on U.S. Highway 1, one mile south of Swainsboro, Georgia, while making a routine check on a stranger attempting to sell a rifle at a cafe. Agent Fields was having dinner with his wife and two daughters when he witnessed a man attempting to sell a rifle. After asking the subject why he wanted to sell the gun, the man, 21, ran to a car outside where his brother, 26, and two females, both 20, were waiting. As the subject got in the car, he shot Agent Fields and sped away. Agent Fields returned fire, shooting five times toward them. Agent Fields died on the way to a hospital. The four suspects were apprehended after they committed carjackings, hold-ups, and gun battles throughout Tennessee and Georgia. The gunman's brother had been shot and seriously wounded. The two male suspects had escaped from a Tennessee jail and chain gang in February 1948. Both were convicted of murder and sentenced to life. The females were sentenced to two years each. After a short stay in prison, the brother was transferred to the state insane asylum. The gunman escaped jail in 1951 and then escaped a Georgia road gang in 1958, kidnapping citizens for their vehicles and shooting at law enforcement officers before being apprehended. On October 5, 1965, he was stabbed to death by a fellow inmate. Agent Fields had served with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation for only three weeks.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and two daughters.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-GA-503FDEB9- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Special Agent Fields served with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Special Agent Fields.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Special Agent Garland E. Fields is one of 1 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.
In GA, 549 of 905 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 60.7% of this state's fallen. That is 60.7 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.
At Georgia Bureau of Investigation, 4 of 6 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 66.7% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Garland E. Fields's cause is highlighted.
How Garland E. Fields Compares
When Felonious Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Garland E. Fields is highlighted in Mar.
Weapons Used Against Officers
Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. Garland E. Fields was killed by gun.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
5 officers from Georgia Bureau of Investigation are honored on badge.nw.
