Donald C. Brown
Patrolman

Donald C. Brown

Toledo Police Department — Toledo, OH
Felonious
End of Watch June 12, 1962
Age 32
Tour of Duty 7 yrs
The Vigil Panel 97 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Patrolman Donald Brown succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained three days earlier while responding to a domestic disturbance at the home of a man fighting with his wife. As soon as Patrolman Brown and two other officers arrived, the man opened fire with a shotgun wounding all three officers. One of the officers returned fire wounding the suspect. The suspect was convicted of Patrolman Brown's murder and sentenced to life in prison on May 28th, 1963. He was paroled on October 7th, 1982. One of the officers who was wounded was struck in the eye with a shotgun pellet resulting in the loss of his sight in that eye. He was the brother of Toledo Patrolman Walter P. Boyle, shot and killed on December 8th, 1961. Patrolman Brown had served with the Toledo Police Department for seven years.

Survivors

He is survived by his wife and child.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-OH-79523CEB
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.
Patrolman Brown gave the Toledo Police Department 7 years.
Thank you for your service to the Toledo community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Brown.

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

Agency

Type Other
Location Toledo, Lucas County, OH
Platform Identity tpd.lucas.oh.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch June 12, 1962
Tour of Duty 7 yrs
Age 32
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious
Weapon Shotgun

Patrolman Donald C. Brown is one of 1 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.

In OH, 572 of 991 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 57.7% of this state's fallen. That is 57.7 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Toledo Police Department, 25 of 32 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 78.1% of this agency's fallen.

Toledo Police Department
25
of 32 officers
78.1% Felonious
OH — Statewide
572
of 991 officers
57.7% Felonious
Nationwide
1
of 97,772 officers
0% Felonious

National Cause Distribution

How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Donald C. Brown's cause is highlighted.

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

How Donald C. Brown Compares

Age at Death
32
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years
Years of Service
7
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 8.4 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Donald C. Brown is highlighted in Jun.

Jan
1,392
Feb
1,295
Mar
1,373
Apr
1,516
May
1,504
Jun
1,442
Jul
1,587
Aug
1,517
Sep
1,491
Oct
1,371
Nov
1,447
Dec
1,624

Weapons Used Against Officers

Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. Donald C. Brown was killed by shotgun.

Handgun
3,684
Gun
3,592
Gun; Unknown type
1,492
Shotgun
1,109
Rifle
935
Officer's handgun
909