William Dean Sanford
Agency patch
City Marshal

William Dean Sanford

Jefferson Police Department — Jefferson, TX
Felonious
End of Watch November 20, 1868
Age 32
The Vigil Panel 3 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Marshal Sanford was shot and killed at 1400 hours when he was ambushed while eating in a local restaurant. A suspect approached the man and shot him without saying a word. The suspect was apprehended by the military.

Rest in peace City Marshal Sanford.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis November 20th, 2022

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-TX-D7448D87
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

158 years is a long time for a name to go unread. Not today.
City Marshal Sanford served with the Jefferson Police Department.
Thank you for your service to the Jefferson community. Gone but never to be forgotten.

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

Agency

Type Police Department
Location Jefferson, Marion County, TX
Platform Identity jpd.marion.tx.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch November 20, 1868
Age 32
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious
Cause Detail Gunfire
Weapon Gun; Unknown type

City Marshal William Dean Sanford 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 TX, 1,461 of 2,422 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 60.3% of this state's fallen. That is 60.3 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

Jefferson Police Department
1
of 1 officers
100% Felonious
TX — Statewide
1,461
of 2,422 officers
60.3% 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 Dean Sanford's cause is highlighted.

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

How William Dean Sanford Compares

Age at Death
32
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. William Dean Sanford is highlighted in Nov.

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 Dean Sanford was killed by gun; unknown type.

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

Others Who Wore This Badge

0 officers from Jefferson Police Department are honored on badge.nw.