Roll of Honor
Incident
Patrolman Leon Czajka suffered a fatal cerebral hemorrhage following a foot pursuit of two car thief suspects.
The two men had been pursued by another policeman who had commandeered a taxi cab, but the cab became stuck in traffic and was unable to pursue them further.
The pursuing policeman called Patrolman Czajka, who then took up the chase by commandeering a car at the intersection of Dearborn Street and Monroe Street. Patrolman Czajka began pursuing the suspects on foot when they abandoned their vehicle at Wells Street and apprehended them a few blocks away.
He collapsed as he covered the two suspects with his pistol drawn at the intersection of Market Street (modern-day S. Wacker Drive) and W. Adams Street. The two men attempted to flee the area but were stopped and held by a police department applicant who witnessed Patrolman Czajka collapse.
Patrolman Czajka was a United States Navy WWI veteran and had served with the Chicago Police Department for 18 years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-IL-0FA16FDB- 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 served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Patrolman Czajka gave the Chicago Police Department 18 years.
Thank you for your service to the Chicago community. Thank you for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
Leon T. Czajka served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Patrolman Leon T. Czajka is one of 2,974 officers lost to illness connected to their service across the full record of this memorial — 9.1% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In IL, 66 of 1,318 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 5% of this state's fallen. That is 4.1 percentage points below the national rate of 9.1%.
At Chicago Police Department, 46 of 571 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 8.1% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Leon T. Czajka's cause is highlighted.
How Leon T. Czajka Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Leon T. Czajka is highlighted in Jan.
Incident Location
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