Parole Officer David W. Burns, Kansas Department of Corrections, Kansas

Parole Officer David W. Burns

Kansas Department of Corrections, Kansas

End of Watch Saturday, December 15, 1923

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David W. Burns

Parole Officer David Burns succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained the previous day while transporting a prisoner from Texarkana, Texas, to the Kansas State Penitentiary.

The prisoner had been able to conceal a .32 caliber handgun and shot Officer Burns four times as they passed through Alicia, Arkansas. Officer Burns was transported to a hospital in St. Louis, Missouri, where he died the following day.

The prisoner was captured and sent to Newport, Arkansas, where he was convicted of Officer Burn's murder and sentenced to life in February of 1925. On May 25, 1926, he was shot and killed by Arkansas Penitentiary guards when he ran from a cotton field where he was working with other inmates.

Parole Officer Burns was a U.S. Army veteran of the Spanish-American War and had served with the Kansas Department of Corrections for 13 years. He was survived by his wife and six children.

He is buried in Leavenworth National Cemetery, Leavenworth, Kansas.

Bio

Age 44
Tour 13 years
Badge Not available
Military Veteran

Incident Details

Cause Gunfire
Location Arkansas
Incident Date Friday, December 14, 1923
Weapon Handgun; .32 caliber
Offender Shot and killed during escape attempt

escape attempt, transport

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Officer Burns,
On today, the 100th 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. Army as a member of the 1st Illinois Artillery Regiment during the Spanish-American War. And to your Family and loved ones, I wish to extend my deepest sympathy.

R.I.P.
USBP

Anonymous
United States Border Patrol

December 15, 2023