Roll of Honor
Incident
Corporal Theopolis Gaines and Lieutenant Tremain Hughes were killed when their state police airplane crashed a few miles east of Cazenovia in Madison County, New York, at 5:19 pm. Corporal Gaines was conducting routine inspections of Troop Communications Sections and was being transported from Troop to Troop by aircraft. Corporal Gaines was a passenger in a plane operated by Lieutenant Hughes, and it is believed that they hit the top of a tree during a forced landing in foggy conditions. The aircraft burst into flames, and both were killed. Lieutenant Hughes was trapped in the rear cockpit of the burning plane, and Corporal Gaines was thrown from the plane and died instantly. Corporal Gaines had served New York State Police in Albany and had previously served with Troop B Malone. In 1928, he had been shot in the shoulder and jaw while chasing a suspected bootlegger.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, parents, and brother.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-NY-0170E042- 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 never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Corporal Gaines gave the New York State Police 5 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of New York. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Corporal Gaines.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Corporal Theophilius Gaines 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 NY, 645 of 2,147 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 30% of this state's fallen. That is 1 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At New York State Police, 94 of 171 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 55% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Theophilius Gaines's cause is highlighted.
How Theophilius Gaines Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Theophilius Gaines is highlighted in Jan.
Others Who Wore This Badge
170 officers from New York State Police are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
