Roll of Honor
Incident
Commander Donafay Collins died after contracting COVID-19 during an outbreak among staff and inmates at the Jail Division 2 facility at 525 Clinton Street in Detroit.
Commander Collins had served with the Wayne County Sheriff's Office for 30 years.
COVID-19 and Law Enforcement
Commander Donafay Collins died on March 25, 2020 of COVID-19 contracted in the line of duty. He was 63.
He is one of 884 officers honored here, and one of 5 at Wayne County Sheriff's Dept..
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 and daughter.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-MI-9B537204- 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.
Commander Collins gave the Wayne County Sheriff's Office 30 years.
Thank you for your service to the Detroit community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Commander Collins.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Commander Donafay Collins 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 MI, 23 of 718 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 3.2% of this state's fallen. That is 5.9 percentage points below the national rate of 9.1%.
At Wayne County Sheriff's Dept., 5 of 14 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 35.7% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Donafay Collins's cause is highlighted.
How Donafay Collins Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Donafay Collins is highlighted in Mar.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
13 officers from Wayne County Sheriff's Dept. are honored on badge.nw.
