Roll of Honor
Incident
Patrolman Franano was stuck by a train after stopping a car for driving with no headlights. Patrolman Franano and his partner were on patrol, traveling on Fifteenth Street when they noticed a car containing two youths go by. The lights of the car were dim, so Patrolman Franano turned the patrol car around and followed them. The youths - realized that the radio was decreasing the power of the headlights, so they turned it off. The officers continued to follow them, so the driver stopped the car at the edge of the train tracks on Fifteenth Street, near Carrington Avenue. Patrolman Franano drew up along side them, got out, and walked over to talk to the driver. He had just admonished him about driving with no headlights, when someone shouted that the train was coming. Patrolman Franano called for everyone to back off the tracks. A Missouri Pacific train reached them before either could get out of the way. The patrol car was hit first. It was slammed into the other car and Officer Franano - still between them - was crushed. The cars were picked up by the engine and carried. The car that had been stopped went 26 feet before catching on a switch standard and falling free of the engine. The patrol car was carried 168 feet, and was still stuck to the engine when the train stopped. Everyone involved were injured and Patrolman Franano was killed.
Survivors
Patrolman Franano had been with the agency for four years and was survived by his wife and three sons.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-MO-042D6C79- 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.
Patrolman Franano gave the Kansas City Police Department 4 years.
Thank you for your service to the Kansas City community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Franano.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Patrolman Frank P. Franano 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%.
At Kansas City Police Department, 47 of 120 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 39.2% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Frank P. Franano's cause is highlighted.
How Frank P. Franano Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Frank P. Franano is highlighted in Sep.
Others Who Wore This Badge
119 officers from Kansas City Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
