Gregory A. Raynor was a 32-year-old deputy with the Clark County Sheriff’s Office who died on April 18, 1978, of wounds suffered three weeks earlier while responding to a rape call in Park Layne. Raynor was shot in the chest and head by an 18-year-old suspect, Jeff Reed, during the incident. Raynor was treated at Mercy Medical Center, fell into a coma, suffered cardiac arrest and ultimately succumbed to his injuries; the county coroner, Dr. George P. Anderson, said the death was indirectly caused by those injuries and the coma.

Reed was arrested after a short vehicle pursuit and shootout and was being held in the Greene County Jail on bonds totaling $150,000 while a grand jury inquiry was under way and further charges were expected in light of Raynor’s death. Raynor’s funeral was held at St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church and he was honored with a 21-gun rifle salute by members of the Springfield Police Division. He is survived by his wife and two children.

Does anyone have memories of Deputy Raynor, or information about the events in Park Layne that spring of 1978?