Roll of Honor
John Murphy Bennett
Incident
Officer John Bennett was killed in an automobile crash as he and another officer transported a prisoner to death row at the Polunsky Unit in Livingston, Texas.
The prison van was traveling on U.S. Highway 190 when it was struck head-on by a pickup truck where the driver had lost control. Officer Bennett was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries one hour later. The other officer and the prisoner both suffered minor injuries. The driver of the pickup truck was also killed in the accident.
Officer Bennett was a United States Air Force veteran and had served with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for 12 years.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife, three sons, mother, brother, and two sisters.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-TX-337AE508- 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 served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Corrections Officer Bennett gave the Texas Department of Criminal Justice 12 years.
Thank you for your service to the Huntsville community. Thank you for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
John Murphy Bennett served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Corrections Officer John Murphy Bennett 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 TX, 653 of 2,421 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 27% of this state's fallen. That is 4 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Correctional Institutions Division, 32 of 124 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 25.8% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. John Murphy Bennett's cause is highlighted.
How John Murphy Bennett Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. John Murphy Bennett is highlighted in Jul.
Others Who Wore This Badge
123 officers from Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Correctional Institutions Division are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
