Roll of Honor
Incident
Officer Robert Nielsen was killed in an automobile accident while responding to another accident call at 1:51 pm
As he proceeded through the intersection at Chandler Boulevard and Pennington Drive, the driver of another vehicle failed to yield the right of way and made a left turn into his path, hitting his 1999 Crown Victoria patrol car, causing it to strike a utility pole. Upon impact, the patrol car burst into flames and Officer Nielsen was trapped inside.
Passersby attempted to pull him from the vehicle but were unable to because of the fire.
Officer Nielsen had served with the Chandler Police Department for two years.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife, parents, brother, and sister.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-AZ-0AA286D4- 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.
Officer Nielsen gave the Chandler Police Department 2 years.
Thank you for your service to the Chandler community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Officer Nielsen.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Officer Robert Joseph Nielsen 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 AZ, 95 of 330 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 28.8% of this state's fallen. That is 2.2 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At Chandler Police Dept., 1 of 7 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 14.3% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Robert Joseph Nielsen's cause is highlighted.
How Robert Joseph Nielsen Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Robert Joseph Nielsen is highlighted in Jun.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
6 officers from Chandler Police Dept. are honored on badge.nw.
