Roll of Honor
Lonnie Verdell Burton
Incident
Chief of Police Lonnie Burton succumbed to complications of a knee injury sustained on May 18th, 2018, when he fell from a curb in front of the Wayland Baptist University police station in Plainview, Texas.
The injury required Chief Burton to undergo knee surgery. He died as a result of complications of the surgery.
Chief Burton was instrumental in the formation of the Wayland Baptist University Police Department and had served with the agency for nine years. He had previously served with the Plainview Police Department for 32 years.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife, daughter, son, three grandchildren, and father.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-TX-C32475FE- 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
41 years. You could have gone home.
Chief of Police Burton gave the Wayland Baptist University Police Department 41 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the Plainview community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Chief of Police Burton.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Chief of Police Lonnie Verdell Burton 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%.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Lonnie Verdell Burton's cause is highlighted.
How Lonnie Verdell Burton Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Lonnie Verdell Burton is highlighted in Jun.