Roll of Honor
Incident
Major Rufus Gates died after being shot by another officer who did not recognize him as an officer. He was off-duty with his son and nephew when his car was struck by another vehicle on McClure Road next to the Whitehaven High School football stadium. After exiting his vehicle to talk to the driver of the other vehicle he returned to his car, retrieved his service weapon, and told his son to call 911 to report that the other driver was armed. Major Gates had returned to the other car and was talking to the occupants when a Memphis police officer pulled onto the scene. The driver of the car that hit Major Gates told the officer that Major Gates had a gun and then drove off. Major Gates was still holding his gun as he approached the Memphis officer's car. Not recognizing Major Gates, the officer fired several shots and fatally wounded him. Major Gates was transported to the hospital where he died from his wounds three days later. Major Gates had served with the Memphis Police Department for 17 years.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife and son.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-TN-499B3443- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Major Gates gave the Memphis Police Department 17 years.
Thank you for your service to the Memphis community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Major Gates.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Major Rufus Gates is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,756 officers honored here.
In TN, 191 of 769 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 24.8% of this state's fallen. That is 24.8 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.
At Memphis Police Department, 25 of 94 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 26.6% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Rufus Gates's cause is highlighted.
How Rufus Gates Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Rufus Gates is highlighted in Nov.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
93 officers from Memphis Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
