Roll of Honor
Incident
Patrolman William Wells was struck by a vehicle and killed while on secondary assignment for the F. & R. Lazarus Store parking garage at Front Street and Rich Street in Columbus. A driver was unable to stop his vehicle driving down the parking ramp despite placing both feet on the brake pedal. Patrolman Wells warned and moved other pedestrians out of the way before he was hit by the car and pushed into a wall. He had served with the Columbus Division of Police for 12 years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and three children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-OH-8D71DFC8- 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.
Patrolman Wells gave the Columbus Division of Police 12 years.
Thank you for your service to the Columbus community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Wells.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Patrolman William Gene Wells 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 OH, 318 of 991 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 32.1% of this state's fallen. That is 1.1 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At Columbus Division of Police, 19 of 59 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 32.2% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William Gene Wells's cause is highlighted.
How William Gene Wells Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William Gene Wells is highlighted in Dec.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
58 officers from Columbus Division of Police are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
