Incident
Correctional Officer McCarthy Taylor died when he fell from the east wall tower at the Virginia State Penitentiary. Officer Taylor had served with the Virginia Department of Corrections for 30 years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-VA-9CAC47F9- 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
30 years. You could have gone home.
Correctional Officer Taylor gave the Virginia Department of Corrections 30 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the people of Virginia. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Correctional Officer Taylor.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Correctional Officer McCarthy Taylor 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 VA, 203 of 654 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 31% of this state's fallen.
At Virginia Department of Corrections, 5 of 16 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 31.3% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. McCarthy Taylor's cause is highlighted.
How McCarthy Taylor Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. McCarthy Taylor is highlighted in Dec.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
15 officers from Virginia Department of Corrections are honored on badge.nw.










