Officer Ray Lynn Barnes

Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission (GFC) Officer Ray Barnes, 31, was shot and killed Nov. 21, 1987, while attempting to arrest a subject illegally hunting deer along the Shoal River near the Okaloosa County-Walton County line.  The shooter was convicted of third-degree murder and sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Officer Barnes spent the last four years of his life serving the GFC in northwest Florida. In 1987, he earned the distinction of being one of the statewide nominees to be honored as Officer of the Year.