By Dan Spalding
InkFreeNews

WARSAW —  A captain with the Warsaw Police Department has died following a health emergency at his home.

Clay Layne

Captain Clay Layne, who had been with WPD for 26 years, died on Tuesday, Oct. 19, after he became ill. He was 52.

Police Chief Scott Whitaker released a statement saying the Warsaw Police Department is shocked and saddened by Layne’s unexpected death. 

Layne suffered a medical emergency at his residence on Monday, Oct. 11. He was taken to Kosciusko Community Hospital and later Fort Wayne Lutheran Hospital, and succumbed to the medical emergency at 2:06 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 19. 

Earlier this morning, he was escorted from Fort Wayne to Redpath-Fruth Funeral Home by numerous law enforcement officers. 

Layne leaves behind his wife, Sandra, and daughters, Allison and Brooklyn.

“Captain Layne was a true public servant, having dedicated over 26 years of service to the Warsaw community,” Whitaker said.

He was a proven, respected leader in the law enforcement community and will be missed by all.  He enjoyed many aspects of his profession, but none more so than the task of supervising and teaching younger officers, he said.

Layne joined the Warsaw Police Department on May 6, 1995. In 2008, he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant, assigned as a second shift commander. In August 2020, he was promoted to the rank of Captain where he was tasked with overseeing the Patrol Division. 

During his law enforcement career, Captain Layne has been a field training coordinator and commander, a Sig Sauer and AR-15 armorer, firearms and chemical munitions instructor, Warsaw Dive Team member and team commander of the Warsaw Emergency Response Team. Layne’s service also included serving eight years in the Indiana Army National Guard as a squad leader.

Layne is the second member of the department to have died in less than two years. Officer Jason Dobbins passed away unexpectedly on Feb. 1, 2020.