Roll of Honor
Richard Allen Wright
Incident
Correctional Officer Richard Wright died as the result of complications after contracting COVID-19 during an outbreak among employees and inmates at the Women's Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Vandalia.
Officer Wright had served with the Missouri Department of Corrections for 15 years. He had previously served with the Audrain County Sheriff's Office and had retired as a Lieutenant from the Little Dixie Fire Protection District.
COVID-19 and Law Enforcement
Correctional Officer Richard Allen Wright died on November 19, 2020 of COVID-19 contracted in the line of duty. He was 61.
He is one of 884 officers honored here, and one of 8 at Missouri Department of Corrections.
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 two children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-MO-FE645A67- 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.
Correctional Officer Wright gave the Missouri Department of Corrections 15 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of Missouri. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Correctional Officer Wright.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Correctional Officer Richard Allen Wright 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 MO, 26 of 813 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 Missouri Department of Corrections, 8 of 20 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 40% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Richard Allen Wright's cause is highlighted.
How Richard Allen Wright Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Richard Allen Wright is highlighted in Nov.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
19 officers from Missouri Department of Corrections are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
