Roll of Honor
William M. Burke
Incident
Location: Illinois Weapon: Person Offender: Struck and killed
Special Officer William Burke was struck and killed by a New York Central train while involved in a foot pursuit of a trespassers near the intersection of 67th Street and South Park Avenue, in Chicago, Illinois.
The man had climbed onto the tracks with Officer Burke in pursuit when the train struck and killed both men.
Officer Burke was survived by his wife.
Survivors
Officer Burke was survived by his wife.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-RR-5CFDACD8- 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
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Special Officer Burke served with the New York Central Railroad Police Department.
Thank you for your service to the New York community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Special Officer Burke.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Special Officer William M. Burke is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 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 New York Central Railroad Police Department, 6 of 14 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 42.9% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William M. Burke's cause is highlighted.
How William M. Burke Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William M. Burke is highlighted in Aug.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
13 officers from New York Central Railroad Police Department are honored on badge.nw.
