Correctional Officer Samuel Reed

Correctional Officer Samuel Reed

Iowa Department of Corrections, Iowa

End of Watch Friday, April 11, 1969

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Samuel Reed

Correctional Officer Samuel Reed was stabbed to death by an inmate at the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison.

The inmate, 31, had been sentenced to prison in 1960 for 25 years for a robbery conviction. In 1965 he received an additional 40 years for stabbing a fellow inmate to death. An additional life term was added on April 24th, 1970, when he was convicted of Officer Reed's murder. In 1981 during a prison riot, he took a dozen staff members hostage, but none were killed. He was considered the most dangerous inmate in the Iowa prison system.

Officer Reed was a United States Navy WWII veteran and had served with the Iowa Department of Corrections for 15 years. He was survived by a daughter.

Bio

  • Age 47
  • Tour 15 years
  • Badge Not available
  • Military Veteran

Incident Details

  • Cause Stabbed
  • Weapon Edged weapon; Shank
  • Offender Sentenced to life

prisoner custody

Most Recent Reflection

View all 8 Reflections

Officer Reed,
On today, the 54th anniversary of your death I would just like to say thank you for your service and sacrifice-not just as a Law Enforcement Officer but for our Country as well when you served with the U.S. Navy during World War II. And to your Family and loved ones, I wish to extend my deepest sympathy.

Fair Winds And Following Seas

Anonymous
United States Border Patrol

April 11, 2023

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