John D. Garnett
Agency patch
Chief Deputy Sheriff

John D. Garnett

Felonious
End of Watch July 24, 1911
Age 26
The Vigil Panel 25 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Chief Deputy Sheriff John Garnett was shot and killed while attempting to arrest a man who had beaten another deputy earlier in the evening.

The subject had disarmed the deputy and beaten him with his service revolver, before stealing it.

Chief Deputy Garnett went to the man's home in Clifton to arrest him. The subject drew a revolver and the two exchanged shots. Despite being mortally wounded, Chief Deputy Garnett was able to return fire and killed the subject.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-AZ-4E53AE3B
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.
Chief Deputy Sheriff Garnett served with the Greenlee County Sheriff's Office.
Thank you for your service to the Clifton community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Chief Deputy Sheriff Garnett.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Type Sheriff's Office
Location Clifton, Greenlee County, AZ
Platform Identity gcso.greenlee.az.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch July 24, 1911
Age 26
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious
Cause Detail Gunfire
Weapon Gun; Unknown type

Chief Deputy Sheriff John D. Garnett 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 AZ, 204 of 330 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 61.8% of this state's fallen. That is 61.8 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

Greenlee County Sheriff's Office
1
of 1 officers
100% Felonious
AZ — Statewide
204
of 330 officers
61.8% Felonious
Nationwide
1
of 97,772 officers
0% Felonious

National Cause Distribution

How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. John D. Garnett's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
1 (0%)
Accident
1 (0%)
Illness
1 (0%)
Cardiac
1 (0%)
Undetermined
1 (0%)
Suicide
1 (0%)

How John D. Garnett Compares

Age at Death
26
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. John D. Garnett is highlighted in Jul.

Jan
1,392
Feb
1,295
Mar
1,373
Apr
1,516
May
1,504
Jun
1,442
Jul
1,587
Aug
1,517
Sep
1,491
Oct
1,371
Nov
1,447
Dec
1,624

Weapons Used Against Officers

Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. John D. Garnett was killed by gun; unknown type.

Handgun
3,684
Gun
3,592
Gun; Unknown type
1,492
Shotgun
1,109
Rifle
935
Officer's handgun
909

Incident Location

Others Who Wore This Badge

0 officers from Greenlee County Sheriff's Office are honored on badge.nw.