Roll of Honor
Incident
Detective Robert Ritchie was shot and killed by a stray bullet near the intersection of 65th Street and Woodland Avenue while searching for burglary suspects.
Detective Ritchie and another Detective were talking to a subject in front of a business when three shots were heard, and Detective Ritchie was shot. The second detective carried Detective Ritchie inside a nearby doctor's office and then followed the direction of the shots. The detective located a subject with a gun in his hand in the rear yard at 8516 Bartram Street and was able to place the subject into custody without incident. Detective Ritchie was taken to Mercy Hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.
The subject was taken to the local police district and admitted to chasing a cat out of his pigeon dovecote by firing three shots and was unaware that his start bullet struck Detective Ritchie. The subject was held on a $2,500 bond and charged with the reckless use of a firearm and violation of the Witkins Firearm Act.
Detective Ritchie was a United States Navy veteran of World War I and had served with the Philadelphia Police Department for 14 years, assigned to the 5th Detective Division on 32nd Street and Woodland Avenue.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, son, and brother, who also served with the Philadelphia Police Department.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-PA-D84DE701- 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.
Detective Ritchie gave the Philadelphia Police Department 14 years.
Thank you for your service to the Philadelphia 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
Robert J. Ritchie served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Detective Robert J. Ritchie 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 PA, 417 of 1,261 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33.1% of this state's fallen. That is 2.1 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At Philadelphia Police Department, 110 of 378 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 29.1% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Robert J. Ritchie's cause is highlighted.
How Robert J. Ritchie Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Robert J. Ritchie is highlighted in May.
Incident Location
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