Owen Eugene Sweeney Jr.

Baltimore Police Department — Baltimore, MD

Felonious

End of Watch May 7, 1997

Age 47

Tour of Duty 29 yrs

The Vigil Panel 143 ›

Gender Male

Incident Service The Sacrifice Department 150

Incident

Lieutenant Owen Sweeney was killed while attempting to serve a petition for a mental commitment. Lieutenant Sweeney went to a home on Bertram Avenue to serve the petition with other officers. The man named on the petition fired a shotgun through the front door. The blast struck Lieutenant Sweeny in his lower back as he was walking away from the door after attempting to talk to the man. The man was ruled mentally unfit to stand trial. He was committed to a maximum security state hospital and held not criminally responsible for Lieutenant Sweeney's murder. Lieutenant Sweeney was a 28-year veteran of the Baltimore Police Department and routinely worked in the field with officers under his command.

Survivors

He is survived by his wife and two sons.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier: BO-US-MD-81F0A419
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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Tributes

29 years. You could have gone home.
Lieutenant Sweeney gave the Baltimore City Police Department 29 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the Baltimore community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Lieutenant Sweeney.

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

Agency

Department Baltimore Police Department

Type Other

Location Baltimore, MD

Platform Identity baltpd.baltimore.md.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch May 7, 1997

Tour of Duty 29 yrs

Age 47

Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious

Weapon Shotgun

Lieutenant Owen Eugene Sweeney Jr. 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 MD, 195 of 377 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 51.7% of this state's fallen. That is 51.7 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Baltimore Police Department, 80 of 151 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 53% of this agency's fallen.

Baltimore Police Department

of 151 officers

53% Felonious

MD — Statewide

195

of 377 officers

51.7% Felonious

Nationwide

of 97,772 officers

0% Felonious