Officer Down Memorial Page - http://www.odmp.org

Sheriff William B.
Orange County Sheriff's Office, Virginia

Sheriff

William B. "Willie" Young

Orange County Sheriff's Office, Virginia

End of Watch: Friday, May 15, 1936

Biographical Info

Age: 48
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available

Incident Details

Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: May 15, 1936
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: Shot and killed

Sheriff Willie Young was shot and killed while attempting to serve a lunacy warrant on a suspect.

During the arrest the suspect and the suspect's sister opened fire on Sheriff Young's posse, killing him and wounding four other officers. After several hours of trying to talk the suspects out of their house a deputy soaked his shirt in gasoline, lit it on fire, and tossed it onto the house, causing it to catch fire. As the suspects attempted to exit the home they were shot and killed by officers and citizens numbering almost 2,000 people.