Incident
Sergeant Robert Harris was killed in a helicopter accident when the police helicopter he was piloting developed engine problems and crashed near the Southern State Parkway. When the helicopter began to experience an engine problem, Sergeant Harris declined an emergency landing at a school because children were nearby. The helicopter crashed as he attempted to locate an alternate location to land. Sergeant Harris was a United States Army WWII veteran and had served with the Nassau County Police Department for 29 years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-NY-6A8D59C0- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 tribute.
Are you family? This record can be claimed and maintained by those who knew Robert. Claim this record.
Also honored at salute.nw. One record, 2 gates. Robert is one person.
This page is permanent and free. No fee to view it, no advertising, no tracking, and no account required. It will not be taken down.
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.
Sergeant Harris gave the Nassau County Police Department 29 years.
Thank you for your service to the Mineola community, and 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
Robert J. Harris served in the the United States military before joining law enforcement.
Sergeant Robert J. Harris is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,759 officers honored here.
In NY, 645 of 2,147 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 30% of this state's fallen. That is 30 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.
At Nassau County Police Department, 21 of 51 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 41.2% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Robert J. Harris's cause is highlighted.
How Robert J. Harris Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Robert J. Harris is highlighted in May.
Military Service
Robert J. Harris served in the United States military before joining law enforcement.
Visit Robert J. Harris’s page on salute.nw →
His full service record — units, decorations, where he served — is kept on salute.nw.
Others Who Wore This Badge
50 officers from Nassau County Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.















