Dwayne Anthony Reeves
Agency patch
Special Police Officer

Dwayne Anthony Reeves

Newark Police Division — Newark, NJ
Felonious
End of Watch July 18, 2005
Age 35
Tour of Duty 4 yrs
The Vigil Panel 153 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Special Police Officer Dwayne Reeves was shot and killed as he and his partner approached a car outside of Weequahic High School at approximately 2:00 p.m.

The officers had just broken up a fight between two female students and were talking with the girls when two men, one of whom was the brother of one of the girls, pulled up in a car and opened fire, striking Officer Reeves in the head and Officer Reeves' partner in the hand. Officer Reeves' partner was able to return fire and shot one of the suspects in the stomach.

Officer Reeves was taken to University Hospital, where he died from his wounds.

The suspect who was shot in the stomach was taken into custody shortly after the shooting but wasn't arrested until the following day. On October 15, 2007, the suspect was found guilty of reckless manslaughter and sentenced to 10 years in prison. He was convicted of four other charges relating to the incident, which added 20 additional years to his sentence. He was paroled in 2019. Another suspect was acquitted of murder but found guilty of other charges and sentenced to ten years. In 2019, he was murdered in another unrelated criminal incident.

Officer Reeves had served with the Newark Police Division for three years and was assigned to the Newark School District. He also worked a second job with the Newark Housing Authority Police for a total of four years.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife and several children.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-NJ-BF87BB35
Stewardship
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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.
Special Police Officer Reeves gave the Newark Police Division 4 years.
Thank you for your service to the Newark community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Special Police Officer Reeves.

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

Agency

Type Police Department
Location Newark, NJ
Platform Identity npdpd.essex.nj.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch July 18, 2005
Tour of Duty 4 yrs
Age 35
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious
Cause Detail Gunfire
Weapon Gun; Unknown type

Special Police Officer Dwayne Anthony Reeves 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 NJ, 229 of 646 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 35.4% of this state's fallen. That is 35.4 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Newark Police Division, 28 of 58 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 48.3% of this agency's fallen.

Newark Police Division
28
of 58 officers
48.3% Felonious
NJ — Statewide
229
of 646 officers
35.4% 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. Dwayne Anthony Reeves's cause is highlighted.

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

How Dwayne Anthony Reeves Compares

Age at Death
35
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years
Years of Service
4
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 8.4 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Dwayne Anthony Reeves is highlighted in Jul.

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. Dwayne Anthony Reeves was killed by gun; unknown type.

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

Incident Location