Willard C. Bayne
Agency: Kansas City Police Department, MO
Officer Willard C. Bayne was with the Kansas City Police Department for 15 months.
While attempting to arrest a burglary suspect at 15th and Poplar, Officer Bayne was shot and killed. Officer Bayne had been watching a man named Homer Vinsant after hearing that Vinsant was trying to sell watches on the street. Officer Bayne's captain advised him to bring Vinsant in if he was ever caught carrying a revolver. In the early hours of February 11, 1921, Officer Bayne was on patrol on Fifteenth Street, where he came across a lone man. Police believed that Officer Bayne either questioned the man or attempted to search him. The man shot Officer Bayne in the face. Officer Bayne dropped and the man apparently began to flee. Officer Bayne shot the man from a distance of approximately 60 feet, mortally wounding him. When a street car stopped at 15th Street and Poplar Avenue, two passengers got off and went to investigate the scene. They found Officer Bayne still alive, and he told them that Vinsant had shot him. Vinsant was dead when the men checked on him - Officer Bayne's bullet had entered through his back and exited through his chest. A passing motorist took Officer Bayne to General Hospital, but he died before they arrived.
Officer Bayne was survived by his mother and father, John and Louise.
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