Roll of Honor
Incident
Police Officer William Saunders succumbed to injuries sustained three days earlier when he fell from his horse while on duty.
He was taken to Jefferson Hospital where he remained until succumbing to his injuries.
Officer Saunders had served with the Philadelphia Police Department for six years and was assigned to the Second Mounted Traffic Squad.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and two children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-PA-4B6F9B39- 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 Saunders gave the Philadelphia Police Department 6 years.
Thank you for your service to the Philadelphia community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Saunders.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Police Officer William D. Saunders 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. William D. Saunders's cause is highlighted.
How William D. Saunders Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William D. Saunders is highlighted in Dec.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
377 officers from Philadelphia Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
