Holly MatkinRawlins, WY – Carbon County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) Deputy Jeffrey “Jeff” Walton died unexpectedly on July 3, according to his department.
The 58-year-old deputy’s exact cause of death was not released.
The CCSO confirmed Deputy Walton’s tragic passing in a press release on July 5.
“The evening hours of July 3, 2022, The Carbon County Sheriff’s office suffered the unimaginable loss of Deputy Jeffrey Walton, a thirty-year veteran of our office, a life-long member of our community, a selfless community servant, grandfather, father, husband, son, brother, uncle, and friend,” the CCSO said.
Deputy Walton’s law enforcement career began 40 years ago, when he was hired as a dispatcher by the Rawlins Police Department (RPD).
He began working for the CCSO as a detention deputy in 1987, and rose through the ranks over the years before becoming a lieutenant and jail administrator.
“Deputy Walton also served in the positions of patrol deputy, court security deputy, evidence custodian, and dispatcher,” the sheriff’s office said.
He retired from the CCSO in 2015 to take a position as a City of Rawlins code enforcement officer, but returned to the sheriff’s office as a court security deputy in 2020.
“The law enforcement profession is an exceptionally rewarding career,” the CCSO said. “It is also an unfortunate truth that law enforcement professionals are expected, by the very communities they serve, to respond to experiences and events, which normal citizens would rarely, or ever be forced to endure.”
“We ask our staff to undergo these traumatic events, over and over throughout their entire career,” the agency continued. “These burdens are tangible; they impact our staff, their families and loved ones, and each employee at the office.”
Deputy Walton was among those who “experienced a wide variety of both positive and negative events with citizens, victims, and suspects alike,” the CCSO said.
“Although all of our deputies are trained professionals, they are first and foremost humans,” the sheriff’s office noted. “The stoic emotions we steadfastly maintain while on duty often crumble when we return to our homes and loved ones…such service to community comes at a cost, often times at a heavy personal cost, all too frequently those costs can be extremely steep.”
The department said it is heartbroken over the loss of the dedicated, longtime deputy.
“Though our hearts are broken, we choose to acknowledge the difficult nature of the profession to which Deputy Walton had with his larger-than-life personality by diligently dedicating himself to this career,” the CCSO said.
Deputy Walton will be laid to rest on July 12, according to his obituary.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Carbon County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Jeffrey “Jeff” Walton, both blood and blue. Thank you for your service.
Rest easy, hero. We’ll hold the line from here.
Sandy Malone
