Roll of Honor
Wagner Lee "Buz" Baskett, Jr.
Incident
Deputy Sheriff Buz Baskett died from complications as the result of contracting COVID in the line of duty.
Deputy Baskett was a United States Army Vietnam veteran who had served in law enforcement for 46 years. He had served with the Breckinridge County Sheriff's Department, Cloverport Police Department, Hawesville Police Department, and Spring Lake Police Department in North Carolina.
COVID-19 and Law Enforcement
Deputy Sheriff Wagner Lee "Buz" Baskett, Jr. died on May 24, 2021 of COVID-19 contracted in the line of duty. He was 70.
He is one of 884 officers honored here.
Beginning in early 2020, law enforcement officers across the country contracted COVID-19 in the course of their duties. While much of the nation sheltered at home, they kept answering calls, making arrests, transporting prisoners, and working face to face with the public. There was no distance to be had from the job.
Corrections officers were hit hardest. Confined facilities and large populations meant constant, close, unavoidable exposure.
Survivors
Deputy Baskett is survived by his wife, son, daughter, and two grandchildren.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-KY-60FF32E1- 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
The country locked its doors. You kept working.
Deputy Sheriff Baskett gave the Breckinridge County Sheriff's Office 46 years.
Thank you for your service to the Hardinsburg community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Sheriff Baskett.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
Wagner Lee "Buz" Baskett, Jr. served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Deputy Sheriff Wagner Lee "Buz" Baskett, Jr. is one of 2,974 officers lost to illness connected to their service across the full record of this memorial — 9.1% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In KY, 21 of 983 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 2.1% of this state's fallen. That is 7 percentage points below the national rate of 9.1%.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Wagner Lee "Buz" Baskett, Jr.'s cause is highlighted.
How Wagner Lee "Buz" Baskett, Jr. Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Wagner Lee "Buz" Baskett, Jr. is highlighted in May.