Roll of Honor
Incident
Deputy Sheriff Joe Stewart and Corporal James Tarver were struck and killed by a vehicle as they and a George State Patrol trooper investigated an earlier accident on State Route 93, four miles west of Griffin, at about 7:10 pm.
They were measuring skid marks on the northern side of a hill crest when an 18-year-old man driving a small pickup truck northbound on Highway 92 came over the hill and, not being able to see the officers in time, first struck Deputy Sheriff Stewart, who died on the scene, and then hit Corporal Tarver. Corporal Tarver died en route to the hospital.
The driver was not charged due to what was decided by the officers' negligence for not warning oncoming drivers of their presence in the roadway.
Deputy Stewart was a United States Army Air Corps WWII veteran. He was survived by his wife and children. His father-in-law and grandson also served in law enforcement.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-GA-7A80AC0E- 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 served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Deputy Sheriff Stewart served with the Spalding County Sheriff's Office.
Thank you for your service to the Griffin community. Thank you for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
Joe C. Stewart, Jr. served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Deputy Sheriff Joe C. Stewart, Jr. 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 GA, 263 of 903 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 29.1% of this state's fallen. That is 1.9 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At Spalding County Sheriff's Office, 4 of 6 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 66.7% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Joe C. Stewart, Jr.'s cause is highlighted.
How Joe C. Stewart, Jr. Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Joe C. Stewart, Jr. is highlighted in Dec.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
5 officers from Spalding County Sheriff's Office are honored on badge.nw.
