Incident
Deputy Sheriff Royce Anderson succumbed to an inadvertent gunshot wound sustained the previous night while making a felony arrest at 9:45 pm. He and his partner had responded to a truck stop on the North Freeway for a stabbing. After interviewing the victim they obtained a description of the suspect and his truck. The deputies located the vehicle and conducted a felony stop near in the 9400 block of the North Freeway. As Deputy Anderson re-holstered his weapon it discharged, striking him in the upper leg and severing all of his major arteries. He was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to the wound at 5:05 am the following morning. Deputy Anderson had served with the Harris County Sheriff's Office for two years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and two children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
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- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Deputy Sheriff Anderson gave the Harris County Sheriff's Office 2 years.
Thank you for your service to the Houston community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Sheriff Anderson.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
The Sacrifice · Accident
Harris County Sheriff's Office has lost 56 officers; 20 of them lost to accidents.
Royce is one of 657 officers lost to accidents in TX, 27.1% of the 2,422 remembered there.
Royce is one of 8,275 officers lost to accidents in the United States, 30% of the 27,551 remembered there.
Royce is one of 10,100 officers lost to accidents worldwide, 29.8% of the 33,917 remembered here.
33,917 officers are remembered on this memorial. Each number below is one of them.
Time
In 1981, 1 officer at Harris County Sheriff's Office was lost to accidents, the 2nd heaviest of 19 years on record. The heaviest was 2024, with 2.
In 1981, 6 officers in TX were lost to accidents, the 40th heaviest of 136 years on record. The heaviest was 1994, with 14.
In 1981, 63 officers in the United States were lost to accidents, the 68th heaviest of 174 years on record. The heaviest was 1929, with 118.
In 1981, 81 officers worldwide were lost to accidents, the 54th heaviest of 200 years on record. The heaviest was 1930, with 131.
Who
Royce was 29. Of the 20 lost to accidents at Harris County Sheriff's Office whose age is recorded, half were between 28.8 and 50.3; the middle age was 40. Royce had served 2 years; the middle length of service was 9 years.
Royce was 29. Of the 626 lost to accidents in TX whose age is recorded, half were between 28 and 46; the middle age was 36. Royce had served 2 years; the middle length of service was 5 years.
Royce was 29. Of the 7,718 lost to accidents in the United States whose age is recorded, half were between 29 and 46; the middle age was 36. Royce had served 2 years; the middle length of service was 6 years.
Royce was 29. Of the 9,451 lost to accidents worldwide whose age is recorded, half were between 29 and 45; the middle age was 36. Royce had served 2 years; the middle length of service was 6 years.
When
October holds 5% of these deaths at Harris County Sheriff's Office; February holds the most, 20%. Mondays: 30%.
October holds 9.7% of these deaths in TX; December holds the most, 11.7%. Mondays: 12.8%.
October holds 9.1% of these deaths in the United States; August holds the most, 9.5%. Mondays: 13.4%.
October holds 9.2% of these deaths worldwide; August holds the most, 9.3%. Mondays: 13.5%.
How
Accident deaths account for 35.7% of all 56 deaths at Harris County Sheriff's Office, the 2nd most common cause. The weapon recorded was gun; unknown type, in 5% of these deaths.
Accident deaths account for 27.1% of all 2,422 deaths in TX, the 2nd most common cause. The weapon recorded was gun; unknown type, in 0.3% of these deaths.
Accident deaths account for 30% of all 27,551 deaths in the United States, the 2nd most common cause. The weapon recorded was gun; unknown type, in 0.5% of these deaths.
Accident deaths account for 29.8% of all 33,917 deaths worldwide, the 2nd most common cause. The weapon recorded was gun; unknown type, in 0.4% of these deaths.
His people
Harris County Sheriff's Office has 56 officers remembered here, Royce among them.
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Carl Frederick Reinhold Court Nov 30, 1895
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Arthur Taylor May 24, 1914
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William C. Williams, Jr.
Apr 16, 1930
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Joe Trapolino
May 23, 1936
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Theron Eldridge Shofner
Jul 14, 1948
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Leo Busby Sep 10, 1953
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Donald E. Knowlton
Aug 22, 1960
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Walter Howard Harvey Nov 5, 1962
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Fred B. Peebles
Sep 23, 1965
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Edd Williams
Jan 12, 1974
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Rodney Scott Morgan
Feb 26, 1974
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Jimmie Howard McKay, Sr.
Mar 22, 1974
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James Alex Wier
Aug 18, 1978
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Joe Mason Westbrook
Jul 1, 1979
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Albert Ochoa Garza
Jul 30, 1979
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Royce Melvin Anderson
Oct 26, 1981
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Reginald Floyd Norwood
Sep 3, 1985
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Jess Willard Rozell, Jr.
Sep 19, 1985
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Haskell Junior McCoy
Feb 2, 1987
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Clark Harold Henry
Jul 25, 1988
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Richard Maurice Blackwell
Sep 6, 1989
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Jeffery Scott Sanford
Sep 14, 1991
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Ricky A. Yates
Jan 25, 1994
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Harvey Mitchell Davis
May 21, 1996
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Douglas John Noll
Jul 22, 1996
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Randolph Michael Eng
Dec 21, 1996
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Keith Alan Fricke
Jun 4, 1997
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Rebecca Ann Shaw
Feb 13, 1998
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Oscar Clarence Hill, IV
Jul 22, 2000
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John Charles Risley
Oct 23, 2000
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Barrett Travis Hill
Dec 4, 2000
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Joseph Norman Dennis
May 22, 2001
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Shane Ronald Bennett
Jun 12, 2002
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Thomas Flores Douglas
Mar 10, 2004
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Thomas Luell Keen
Sep 15, 2008
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Dionicio M. Camacho
Oct 23, 2009
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Eddie Lynn Wotipka
Jun 10, 2010
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Jesse Valdez, III
Oct 29, 2014
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Tronoski Dontel Jones
Aug 20, 2015
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Darren H. Goforth
Aug 28, 2015
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Sandeep Singh Dhaliwal
Sep 27, 2019
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Raymond John Scholwinski
May 6, 2020
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Juan Menchaca
Jun 13, 2020
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Cornelius Bernard Anderson
Jul 12, 2020
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Johnny Ramos Tunches
Nov 2, 2020
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Robert Perez
Feb 2, 2021
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Alexander David Gwosdz
Apr 22, 2021
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Shaun Christopher Waters
Aug 1, 2021
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Joshua James Sieman
Oct 21, 2021
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Ramon Gutierrez
Jan 24, 2022
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Darren Almendarez
Mar 31, 2022
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Robert Adam Howard
May 11, 2022
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Rondald Bates
Feb 10, 2024
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Bryan Sweetman
Mar 4, 2024
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John Hampton Coddou, III
Apr 23, 2024
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Fernando Esqueda
Jul 11, 2024
Where
Where the Name Is Cut
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial · Panel 26-W
What is kept
Photographs, film, sound and papers — what survived a life.
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