Thomas G. Smith, Jr.
Agency patch
Police Officer

Thomas G. Smith, Jr.

Accident
End of Watch December 5, 1997
Age 23
Tour of Duty 3 yrs
The Vigil Panel 144 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Police Officer Thomas Smith was struck and killed by a vehicle while assisting at the scene of a previous accident on I-55 south of Butler Hill Road at about 12:20 am. He was standing next to a tow truck with the earlier accident victim when a van struck a patch of ice and slid into them. Patrolman Smith and the original accident victim died at the scene. The driver of the van was taken into custody for suspicion of involuntary manslaughter. Officer Smith had served with the St. Louis County Police Department for three years. His father had also served with the agency.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-MO-11A76B1D
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.
Police Officer Smith gave the St. Louis County Police Department 3 years.
Thank you for your service to the Clayton community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Smith.

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

Agency

Location Clayton, MO
Platform Identity slcpd.stlouis.mo.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch December 5, 1997
Tour of Duty 3 yrs
Age 23
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Police Officer Thomas G. Smith, Jr. 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 MO, 237 of 813 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 29.2% of this state's fallen. That is 1.8 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.

At St. Louis County Police Department, 3 of 11 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 27.3% of this agency's fallen.

St. Louis County Police Department
3
of 11 officers
27.3% Accident
MO — Statewide
237
of 813 officers
29.2% Accident
Nationwide
10,088
of 32,508 officers
31% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Thomas G. Smith, Jr.'s cause is highlighted.

Felonious
17,623 (54.2%)
Accident
10,088 (31%)
Illness
2,974 (9.1%)
Cardiac
1,306 (4%)
Undetermined
260 (0.8%)
Suicide
256 (0.8%)
vehicular
1 (0%)

How Thomas G. Smith, Jr. Compares

Age at End of Watch
23
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
3
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Thomas G. Smith, Jr. is highlighted in Dec.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
707
May
847
Jun
795
Jul
897
Aug
937
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897

Incident Location