Donald Matejka

Nebraska State Patrol — Lincoln, NE

Cardiac

End of Watch December 27, 1989

Age 56

Tour of Duty 30 yrs

Badge 192

The Vigil Panel 135 ›

Gender Male

Incident Service The Sacrifice Department 14

Incident

Trooper Don Matejka suffered a fatal heart attack while attempting to subdue a suspect at the scene of a domestic disturbance in Madison County, Nebraska. He and another trooper had responded to the mobile home just off Highway 81, north of Norfolk, and made contact with a male subject. A struggle ensued when Trooper Matejka attempted to stop the man from leaving the scene. He collapsed during the struggle. He was transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Trooper Matejka had served with the Nebraska Highway Patrol for 30 years.

Survivors

Survivors include his wife and four children.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier: BO-US-NE-7847F498
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

30 years. You could have gone home.
Trooper Matejka gave the Nebraska State Patrol 30 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the people of Nebraska. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Trooper Matejka.

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

Agency

Department Nebraska State Patrol

Location Lincoln, NE

Platform Identity nhp.ne.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch December 27, 1989

Tour of Duty 30 yrs

Age 56

Badge Number 192

Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Cardiac

Trooper Donald Matejka is one of 1,306 officers lost to cardiac events in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 4% of all 32,508 officers honored here.

In NE, 10 of 151 officers were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 6.6% of this state's fallen. That is 2.6 percentage points above the national rate of 4%.

At Nebraska State Patrol, 1 of 15 officers on record were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 6.7% of this agency's fallen.

Nebraska State Patrol

of 15 officers

6.7% Cardiac

NE — Statewide

of 151 officers

6.6% Cardiac

Nationwide

1,306

of 32,508 officers

4% Cardiac