Roll of Honor
Incident
Deputy Sheriff Ricky Anderson suffered a fatal heart attack while preparing equipment to respond to a call involving approximately 12 cows that were running loose in a neighborhood.
Deputy Anderson had been called in early to assist at the scene. He began to feel ill and returned home, where he collapsed. He was transported to Bartow Regional Medical Center where he passed away a short time later.
Deputy Anderson had served with the Polk County Sheriff's Office for eight years and was assigned to the Agricultural Crimes Unit. He had previously served with the Fort Meade Police Department for 18 years. He is survived by his wife, son, twin daughters, mother, and sister. His son also serves as a sheriff's deputy with the Polk County Sheriff's Office.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife, son, twin daughters, mother, and sister.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-FL-E7B39BFA- 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
26 years. You could have gone home.
Deputy Sheriff Anderson gave the Polk County Sheriff's Office 26 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the Winter Haven community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Sheriff Anderson.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Deputy Sheriff Ricky Carlton Anderson is one of 1,306 officers lost to cardiac events in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 4% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In FL, 62 of 1,008 officers were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 6.2% of this state's fallen. That is 2.2 percentage points above the national rate of 4%.
At Polk County Sheriff's Dept., 1 of 18 officers on record were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 5.6% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Cardiac compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Ricky Carlton Anderson's cause is highlighted.
How Ricky Carlton Anderson Compares
When Cardiac Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Cardiac deaths across the full memorial record. Ricky Carlton Anderson is highlighted in Feb.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
17 officers from Polk County Sheriff's Dept. are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
