Roll of Honor
Incident
Correctional Officer Wayne Griglen, Correctional Officer Carlton Cherry, Correctional Officer Eddie Davis, and Sergeant Tommie Goggins were killed in an automobile crash while returning from an Emergency Response Team training class. As they were driving on I-75, six miles south of Tifton, a tractor-trailer forced them off of the road and directly into the path of two tractor-trailers heading in the opposite direction. Both semis struck the van simultaneously. Two of the officers were thrown from the van, and the rest were trapped inside. Eight other officers who were riding in the van were hospitalized. The driver of the semi that caused the crash was charged with several offenses, including four counts of vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of an accident. Officer Griglen had served with the Georgia Department of Corrections for six years and was assigned to the Rutledge Correctional Institution. He is buried at the Green Acres Cemetery in Columbus, Muscogee County, Georgia.
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BO-US-GA-C51ECD9D- Stewardship
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- 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.
Correctional Officer Griglen gave the Georgia Department of Corrections 6 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of Georgia. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Correctional Officer Griglen.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Correctional Officer Wayne Herman Griglen is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.
In GA, 264 of 905 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 29.2% of this state's fallen. That is 29.2 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.
At Georgia Department of Corrections, 8 of 38 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 21.1% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Wayne Herman Griglen's cause is highlighted.
How Wayne Herman Griglen Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Wayne Herman Griglen is highlighted in Feb.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
37 officers from Georgia Department of Corrections are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
