Will Hudson Evans
Agency patch
Deputy Sheriff

Will Hudson Evans

Felonious
End of Watch October 15, 1935
Age 57
Tour of Duty 12 yrs
The Vigil Panel 70 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Deputy Evans was shot and killed by a man, 65, when he went to his home on very dark night to make sure he, his wife, and daughter were safe. Earlier the man's wife and daughter had taken out warrants on a man for threatening to kill them. Deputy Evans, fearing the man may come back, had the warrants with him and planned to stay with the family for a while to make them feel at ease and possibly nab the suspect. The man told officers he shot Deputy Evans, as he made his way to his home, thinking he was the suspect. Deputy Evans had served with the agency for 12 years.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife and three children.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-TN-9A38A15B
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.
Deputy Sheriff Evans gave the Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office 12 years.
Thank you for your service to the Ripley community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Sheriff Evans.

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

Agency

Type Sheriff's Office
Location Ripley, Lauderdale County, TN
Platform Identity lcso.lauderdale.tn.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch October 15, 1935
Tour of Duty 12 yrs
Age 57
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious

Deputy Sheriff Will Hudson Evans 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 TN, 498 of 769 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 64.8% of this state's fallen. That is 64.8 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office, 7 of 7 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 100% of this agency's fallen.

Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office
7
of 7 officers
100% Felonious
TN — Statewide
498
of 769 officers
64.8% 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. Will Hudson Evans's cause is highlighted.

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

How Will Hudson Evans Compares

Age at Death
57
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years
Years of Service
12
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 8.4 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Will Hudson Evans is highlighted in Oct.

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.

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