William Isaac Wainwright
Agency patch
Police Officer

William Isaac Wainwright

Reynolds Police Department — Reynolds, GA
Felonious
End of Watch January 6, 1973
Age 63
Tour of Duty 13 yrs
The Vigil Panel 111 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Police Officer William Wainwright was shot and killed with his own service weapon while arresting a suspect. As the man was being placed in the patrol car he started resisting, gained control of Officer Wainwright's service weapon, and shot him several times. A second officer who arrived at the scene engaged the suspect in a shootout. The suspect was shot and killed and the officer was wounded during the shootout. Officer Wainwright had served with the Reynolds Police Department for 13 years.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife, four sons, and two daughters.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-GA-5CEDB97E
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.
Police Officer Wainwright gave the Reynolds Police Department 13 years.
Thank you for your service to the Reynolds community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Wainwright.

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

Agency

Type Police Department
Location Reynolds, Taylor County, GA
Platform Identity rpd.taylor.ga.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch January 6, 1973
Tour of Duty 13 yrs
Age 63
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious
Weapon Officer's handgun

Police Officer William Isaac Wainwright 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 GA, 549 of 905 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 60.7% of this state's fallen. That is 60.7 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

Reynolds Police Department
1
of 1 officers
100% Felonious
GA — Statewide
549
of 905 officers
60.7% 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 Isaac Wainwright's cause is highlighted.

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

How William Isaac Wainwright Compares

Age at Death
63
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years
Years of Service
13
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 8.4 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. William Isaac Wainwright is highlighted in Jan.

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 Isaac Wainwright was killed by officer's handgun.

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 Reynolds Police Department are honored on badge.nw.