Roll of Honor
Incident
Lieutenant Lonny Hempstead died from complications as the result of contracting COVID-19 during a confirmed exposure while serving a search warrant.
Lieutenant Hempstead was a Florida Army National Guard veteran and had served with the Lafayette County Sheriff's Office for 26 years.
COVID-19 and Law Enforcement
Lieutenant Lonny Hempstead died on August 10, 2021 of COVID-19 contracted in the line of duty. He was 55.
He is one of 884 officers honored here.
Beginning in early 2020, law enforcement officers across the country contracted COVID-19 in the course of their duties. While much of the nation sheltered at home, they kept answering calls, making arrests, transporting prisoners, and working face to face with the public. There was no distance to be had from the job.
Corrections officers were hit hardest. Confined facilities and large populations meant constant, close, unavoidable exposure.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife, two children, two grandchildren, and parents.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-FL-4581A517- 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
The country locked its doors. You kept working.
Lieutenant Hempstead gave the Lafayette County Sheriff's Office 26 years.
Thank you for your service to the Mayo community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Lieutenant Hempstead.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
Lonny Hempstead served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Lieutenant Lonny Hempstead is one of 2,974 officers lost to illness connected to their service across the full record of this memorial — 9.1% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In FL, 81 of 1,008 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 8% of this state's fallen. That is 1.1 percentage points below the national rate of 9.1%.
At Lafayette County Sheriff's Office, 1 of 3 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 33.3% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Lonny Hempstead's cause is highlighted.
How Lonny Hempstead Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Lonny Hempstead is highlighted in Aug.
Others Who Wore This Badge
2 officers from Lafayette County Sheriff's Office are honored on badge.nw.
