Roll of Honor
Incident
Warden Earl Barksdale died as a result of contracting COVID-19 while serving at the Baskerville Correctional Center at 4150 Hayes Mill Road in Baskerville, Virginia.
Warden Barksdale had served with the Virginia Department of Corrections for over 43 years.
COVID-19 and Law Enforcement
Warden Earl R. Barksdale died on September 9, 2020 of COVID-19 contracted in the line of duty. He was 66.
He is one of 884 officers honored here.
Beginning in early 2020, law enforcement officers across the country contracted COVID-19 in the course of their duties. While much of the nation sheltered at home, they kept answering calls, making arrests, transporting prisoners, and working face to face with the public. There was no distance to be had from the job.
Corrections officers were hit hardest. Confined facilities and large populations meant constant, close, unavoidable exposure.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, son, and daughter.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-VA-4DDA52B8- 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
The country locked its doors. You kept working.
Warden Barksdale gave the Virginia Department of Corrections 43 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of Virginia. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Warden Barksdale.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Warden Earl R. Barksdale is one of 2,974 officers lost to illness connected to their service across the full record of this memorial — 9.1% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In VA, 23 of 654 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 3.5% of this state's fallen. That is 5.6 percentage points below the national rate of 9.1%.
At Virginia Department of Corrections, 2 of 16 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 12.5% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Earl R. Barksdale's cause is highlighted.
How Earl R. Barksdale Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Earl R. Barksdale is highlighted in Sep.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
15 officers from Virginia Department of Corrections are honored on badge.nw.
