Roll of Honor
Incident
Deputy Wass was killed in a motorcycle accident while en route to the department headquarters on Texas 36 South. A speeding vehicle entered his lane and struck his motorcycle head-on.
Six years earlier, in December 2000, Deputy Wass arrested the murderer of Deputy Barrett Hill of the Harris County Sheriff's Office.
Deputy Wass had served with the Washington County Sheriff's Office for 10 years and was a Peace Officer of the Year.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, child, parents, and brother.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-TX-80CC286C- 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.
Deputy Sheriff Wass gave the Washington County Sheriff's Office 10 years.
Thank you for your service to the Brenham community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Sheriff Wass.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Deputy Sheriff Donald Ellis Wass 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 Washington County Sheriff's Office, 1 of 3 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33.3% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Donald Ellis Wass's cause is highlighted.
How Donald Ellis Wass Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Donald Ellis Wass is highlighted in Apr.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
2 officers from Washington County Sheriff's Office are honored on badge.nw.
