Amarillo Police Department, Texas
End of Watch: Monday, June 8, 1964
Age: 23
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: June 8, 1964
Weapon Used: Rifle; .257 caliber
Suspect Info: One shot and killed
Patrolman Meadows was shot and killed just outside of the city limits during a vehicle pursuit of two juvenile suspects who had fled from a boy's camp and taken a family hostage. During the pursuit the two juveniles repeatedely fired at officers, striking Patrolman Meadows in the head.
Other officers returned fire, killing one of the suspects, age 14. The other 15-year-old suspect was sent to a state reformatory. On his 17th birthday he was charged with murder but was later acquitted because it could not be determined who fired the fatal shot. He returned to his home in Hammon, Oklahoma, where on February 8, 1967, he murdered his father, his brother, and a friend. He was convicted of three counts of murder and sentenced to death. His sentence was later commuted to three life terms. He died in prison November 13, 2013.
Patrolman Meadows was survived by his wife.