Roll of Honor
William Thomas Butler
Incident
Investigator William Butler and Inspector Lewis Highsmith, of the United States Customs Service, were killed in an automobile accident while traveling on official business from Wilmington to Raleigh, North Carolina. As they approached the Black Lake Bridge, on Highway 301, the steering mechanism of their car failed and struck an abutment wall. Investigator Butler and Inspector Highsmith were both killed on impact.
Survivors
Investigator Butler was survived by his wife.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-9D0E43D6- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Investigator Butler served with the United States Department of the Treasury.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Investigator Butler.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Investigator William Thomas Butler is one of 10,088 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In DC, 454 of 1,419 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 32% of this state's fallen. That is 1 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At United States Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service - Alcohol Tax Unit, 11 of 30 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 36.7% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William Thomas Butler's cause is highlighted.
How William Thomas Butler Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William Thomas Butler is highlighted in Jan.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
29 officers from United States Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service - Alcohol Tax Unit are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
