Deputy Sheriff James W. Taylor, Winston County Sheriff's Office, Alabama

Deputy Sheriff James W. Taylor

Winston County Sheriff's Office, Alabama

End of Watch Wednesday, July 7, 1982

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James W. Taylor

Deputy Sheriff James Taylor was shot and killed during an attempted jailbreak. The brother and two acquaintances of a prisoner in the jail had come to break him out.

Deputy Taylor was sitting in his patrol car next to the county jail when three men who were approaching him suddenly opened fire with a shotgun and a pistol. He was shot several times and died instantly. The suspects fled from the scene after they failed to free a prisoner who was the brother of one of the suspects and was in jail for murder.

Two suspects were captured the next day. The other suspect was apprehended by FBI agents in Nashville, Tennessee, six months later.

Two suspects were convicted of Deputy Taylor's murder. One was sentenced to death, but later his sentence was commuted to life. The second suspect was sentenced to 18 years in prison. The third suspect was convicted of manslaughter.

Deputy Taylor had served with the Winston County Sheriff's Office for six years. He was survived by his wife and four children.

Bio

Age 50
Tour 6 years
Badge Not available

Incident Details

Cause Gunfire
Weapon Handgun
Offender Sentenced to life

ambush, escape attempt

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Most Recent Reflection

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Heavenly Father, I come before You today grieved in heart over the divisions in our country; the United States of America. I grieve for every life lost to violence, regardless of color or creed. And I especially grieve this day over the senseless deaths of America’s Peace Officers whose sworn duty is to protect us from harm. Please grant comfort and hope to their families. I know from the Holy Scriptures in Romans 13 that Peace Officers have a sacred task, to enforce laws that protect the innocent and punish the guilty. I pray that You will protect them as they serve us. Give them wisdom, discernment, and a deep desire to serve You. Please surround every Peace Officer in our nation, the United States of America, with battalions of warring angels to protect them from harm. I stand in the powerful and mighty name of the Lord Jesus Christ against every work of Satan intended to inflict injury and death on our Protectors. May Satan’s power be thwarted, in Your mighty and holy name, and his plans exposed by Your Light. In the mighty and holy name of the Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior, our Redeemer, and the Mediator between us, Heavenly Father, in prayer, and by His authority, I pray! Amen.

Please find Encouragement, Comfort, Support, and Hope from God's Word:

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”
[Matthew 5:9 ESV];

"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." [Psalm 23:4 ESV];

"Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends."
[John 15:13 ESV];

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." [Matthew 5:4 ESV];

"And he [Jesus] said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise." [Luke 23:43 ESV], and;

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." [John 3:16 ESV].

Chaplain Steven R. Closs, DDiv.
Ordained/Licensed Independent WCM Clergy (06/01/2020)
I'M PRAYING MINISTRY: Devoted to Intercessory Prayer and God's Word
Member: Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers - USA
Member: National Certified Chaplains Association (NCCA)
Member: National Association of Christian Ministers (NACM)