Roll of Honor
Incident
Mounted Officer Robert H. Goodson was accidentally shot and killed as he conversed with fellow officers outside of the police stables, on Pryor Street, fifteen minutes before shift change. Another officer, who was seated in an alley across the street, was attempting to clean a 38-caliber Smith and Wesson pistol he had recently purchased at an auction. The gun was rusty, and, as the officer attempted to force the hammer back, the gun slipped from his hands and discharged. The shot hit the stone in the alley and ricocheted up.
Just seconds before the gun fired, Officer Goodson had been preparing to cross the street to go to the station when a fellow officer called him back. As Officer Goodson turned to respond to the officer and lifted his arm to lean against the awning post, the misfired bullet struck in his exposed ribs, severing an artery. Officer Goodson stayed conscious long enough to ask his fellow officers to care for his wife and children. He succumbed to his injuries four hours later.
Officer Goodson had served as an Atlanta police officer for over 10 years and had been on the mounted squad for the last four years of his career.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, three children, and two brothers.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-GA-31B6F6EC- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
Are you family? This record can be claimed and maintained by those who knew Robert. Claim this record.
This page is permanent and free. No fee to view it, no advertising, no tracking, and no account required. It will not be taken down.
Tributes
135 years is a long time for a name to go unread. Not today.
Mounted Policeman Goodson gave the Atlanta Police Department 10 years.
Thank you for your service to the Atlanta community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Mounted Policeman Robert H. Goodson is one of 10,094 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,585 officers honored here.
In GA, 263 of 903 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 29.1% of this state's fallen. That is 1.9 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At Atlanta Police Department, 29 of 88 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Robert H. Goodson's cause is highlighted.
How Robert H. Goodson Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Robert H. Goodson is highlighted in May.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
87 officers from Atlanta Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
