Roll of Honor
Incident
Officer Orsburne was killed when his patrol car was rammed by a car during a vehicle pursuit. He was assisting state patrol officers in the pursuit of a stolen vehicle when the vehicle intentionally rammed the patrol car. The suspect fled on foot but was later apprehended and sentenced to five years in connection with Officer Orsburne's death.
Survivors
Officer Orsburne was survived by his two daughters.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-WI-8D8BE8BA- 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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Also honored at salute.nw — U.S. Air Force. One record, 2 gates. Harlend is one person.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Traffic Officer Orsburne gave the Dane County Traffic Police 8 years.
Thank you for your service to the Madison community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Traffic Officer Orsburne.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
Harlend G. Orsburne served in the U.S. Air Force (1963â1966) before joining law enforcement.
Traffic Officer Harlend G. Orsburne is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.
In WI, 124 of 317 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 39.1% of this state's fallen. That is 39.1 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Harlend G. Orsburne's cause is highlighted.
How Harlend G. Orsburne Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Harlend G. Orsburne is highlighted in Jul.
Incident Location
Military Service
Harlend G. Orsburne served in the U.S. Air Force (1963–1966) before joining law enforcement.
Visit Harlend G. Orsburne’s page on salute.nw →
His full service record — units, decorations, where he served — is kept on salute.nw.
Others Who Wore This Badge
0 officers from Dane County Traffic Police are honored on badge.nw.