William T. Osborne
Agency patch
Officer

William T. Osborne

Lancaster Division of Police — Lancaster, OH
Felonious
End of Watch December 27, 1909
Age 51
Tour of Duty 6 yrs
The Vigil Panel 24 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Officer William Osborne was shot and killed while conducting a burglary surveillance at the Fairfield County Courthouse at approximately 1:00 am. He was struck in the leg by a shotgun blast. Officer Osborne had served with the Lancaster Police Department for six years.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-OH-221A95E9
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.
Officer Osborne gave the Lancaster Division of Police 6 years.
Thank you for your service to the Lancaster community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Officer Osborne.

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

Agency

Type Other
Location Lancaster, OH
Platform Identity ldpd.fairfield.oh.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch December 27, 1909
Tour of Duty 6 yrs
Age 51
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious
Weapon Shotgun

Officer William T. Osborne 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 OH, 572 of 991 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 57.7% of this state's fallen. That is 57.7 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Lancaster Division of Police, 2 of 3 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 66.7% of this agency's fallen.

Lancaster Division of Police
2
of 3 officers
66.7% Felonious
OH — Statewide
572
of 991 officers
57.7% 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. William T. Osborne's cause is highlighted.

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

How William T. Osborne Compares

Age at Death
51
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years
Years of Service
6
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 8.4 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. William T. Osborne is highlighted in Dec.

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. William T. Osborne was killed by shotgun.

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

Incident Location

Others Who Wore This Badge

2 officers from Lancaster Division of Police are honored on badge.nw.