Roll of Honor
Incident
Corporal Joseph Cushman was accidentally shot and killed while performing training for a school shooting.
A group of officers were conducting training at a local junior high school when Corporal Cushman was shot in the head. All of the officers involved were wearing helmets and vests and were supposed to be using rubber bullets.
Corporal Cushman and a second instructor were demonstrating a drill to other officers when the other instructor's weapon discharged. The school year had already ended, and no students were present during the training exercise.
Corporal Cushman had been employed with the Arlington Police Department for four and one-half years and had been awarded Rookie of the Year in 1999. He had been promoted to Corporal the day before he was killed.
Corporal Cushman is survived by his fiancee and parents.
Survivors
Corporal Cushman is survived by his fiancee and parents.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-TX-9C6B7338- 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.
Corporal Cushman gave the Arlington Police Department 4 years.
Thank you for your service to the Arlington community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Corporal Cushman.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Corporal Joseph Thomas Cushman 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 TX, 653 of 2,421 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 27% of this state's fallen. That is 4 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At Arlington Police Department, 4 of 9 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 44.4% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Joseph Thomas Cushman's cause is highlighted.
How Joseph Thomas Cushman Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Joseph Thomas Cushman is highlighted in Jun.
Others Who Wore This Badge
8 officers from Arlington Police Department are honored on badge.nw.
