Thomas Peter Sale
Incident
Warden Thomas Sale suffered a fatal heart attack at the North Carolina Penitentiary after overseeing the execution of two inmates.
He had assisted with removing the bodies from the electric chairs following the state's first double electrocution. He returned to his office where he suddenly collapsed.
Warden Sale had served with the North Carolina Penitentiary for seven years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, four children, and at least one brother.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-NC-AFEF0D42- 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 Sale gave the North Carolina Department of Public Safety 7 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of North Carolina. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Warden Sale.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Warden Thomas Peter Sale is one of 1,306 officers lost to cardiac events in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 4% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In NC, 33 of 664 officers were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 5% of this state's fallen. That is 1 percentage points above the national rate of 4%.
At North Carolina Department of Public Safety - Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice, 2 of 31 officers on record were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 6.5% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Cardiac compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Thomas Peter Sale's cause is highlighted.
How Thomas Peter Sale Compares
When Cardiac Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Cardiac deaths across the full memorial record. Thomas Peter Sale is highlighted in Jan.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
30 officers from North Carolina Department of Public Safety - Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.















