Anthony Acosta
Agency patch
Correctional Officer

Anthony Acosta

Hampden County Sheriff's Office — Springfield, MA
Accident
End of Watch February 22, 1989
Age 22
Tour of Duty 2 yrs
The Vigil Panel 134 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Correctional Officer Anthony Acosta was accidentally shot and killed while returning his service revolver to a gun locker at the old Hampden County House of Correction on York Street in Springfield. He was returning to the gun to the locker following visiting hours when it was accidentally discharged. The round struck him in the face, killing him. Officer Acosta had served with the Hampden County Sheriff's Office for two years.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-MA-18DCDAA5
Stewardship
Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw
August 2, 2026
Last updated
August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Correctional Officer Acosta gave the Hampden County Sheriff's Office 2 years.
Thank you for your service to the Springfield community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Correctional Officer Acosta.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Type Sheriff's Office
Location Springfield, MA
Platform Identity hcso.hampden.ma.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch February 22, 1989
Tour of Duty 2 yrs
Age 22
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Correctional Officer Anthony Acosta is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.

In MA, 158 of 469 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33.7% of this state's fallen. That is 33.7 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Hampden County Sheriff's Office, 1 of 3 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33.3% of this agency's fallen.

Hampden County Sheriff's Office
1
of 3 officers
33.3% Accident
MA — Statewide
158
of 469 officers
33.7% Accident
Nationwide
1
of 97,772 officers
0% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Anthony Acosta's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
1 (0%)
Accident
1 (0%)
Illness
1 (0%)
Cardiac
1 (0%)
Undetermined
1 (0%)
Suicide
1 (0%)

How Anthony Acosta Compares

Age at Death
22
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
2
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Anthony Acosta is highlighted in Feb.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
708
May
848
Jun
797
Jul
899
Aug
938
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897

Incident Location

Others Who Wore This Badge

2 officers from Hampden County Sheriff's Office are honored on badge.nw.