Wesley John Smith
Patrolman

Wesley John Smith

Charleston Police Department — Charleston, SC
Veteran → Accident
End of Watch December 16, 1975
Age 25
Tour of Duty 2 yrs
Badge 60
The Vigil Panel 116 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Patrolman Wesley Smith was killed in an automobile accident while responding to a robbery in progress call at the Riverview Holiday Inn. He lost control of his patrol on the ramp of the Highway 61 overpass over Highway 17 about 1:40 am. The patrol car struck the abutment. The robbery was later determined to only be a larceny. Patrolman Smith was a U.S. Navy veteran.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-SC-EAED98AD
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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Also honored at salute.nw — U.S. Navy. One record, 2 gates. Wesley is one person.

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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 Smith gave the Charleston Police Department 2 years.
Thank you for your service to the Charleston 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

Type Other
Location Charleston, SC
Platform Identity cpd.charleston.sc.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch December 16, 1975
Tour of Duty 2 yrs
Age 25
Badge Number 60
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Military Service

Wesley John Smith served in the U.S. Navy before joining law enforcement.

View full service record on salute.nw →

Patrolman Wesley John Smith 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 SC, 138 of 440 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 31.4% of this state's fallen. That is 31.4 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Charleston Police Department, 10 of 24 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 41.7% of this agency's fallen.

Charleston Police Department
10
of 24 officers
41.7% Accident
SC — Statewide
138
of 440 officers
31.4% Accident
Nationwide
1
of 97,759 officers
0% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Wesley John Smith's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
1 (0%)
Accident
1 (0%)
Illness
1 (0%)
Cardiac
1 (0%)
Undetermined
1 (0%)
Suicide
1 (0%)

How Wesley John Smith Compares

Age at Death
25
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
2
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Wesley John Smith is highlighted in Dec.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
708
May
848
Jun
797
Jul
899
Aug
938
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897

Incident Location

Military Service

Wesley John Smith served in the U.S. Navy before joining law enforcement.

Visit Wesley John Smith’s page on salute.nw →

His full service record — units, decorations, where he served — is kept on salute.nw.