Roll of Honor
Incident
Police Officer Charles Hartman drowned while attempting to rescue a canoeist who was stuck in a tree on the Blue River between Holmes Road and West 143rd Street in Kansas City, Missouri. The man had climbed into the tree five hours earlier after his canoe capsized during a severe storm that moved through the area. During the rescue attempt Officer Hartman, who was in scuba gear, was struck by a log and knocked unconscious. Other members of the rescue team immediately attempted to rescue him. He was eventually pulled from the river and flown to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. Officer Hartman was a member of the Lee's Summit Underwater Rescue and Recovery Team. Officer Hartman had served with the Lee's Summit Police Department for seven years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and daughter.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-MO-D17B2B7C- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Police Officer Hartman gave the Lee's Summit Police Department 7 years.
Thank you for your service to the Lee's Summit community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Hartman.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Police Officer Charles David Hartman is one of 10,088 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In MO, 237 of 813 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 29.2% of this state's fallen. That is 1.8 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Charles David Hartman's cause is highlighted.
How Charles David Hartman Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Charles David Hartman is highlighted in May.