Roll of Honor
Incident
Sergeant Edward Leap was killed when his patrol car was struck by an Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad freight train at the K Street crossing.
He was traveling northbound and had stopped to let a string of cars being pulled by a westbound switch engine pass. After the switch engine passed he started across the tracks when his vehicle was struck by the eastbound freight train.
Sergeant Leap was assigned to special investigations and was en route to his home to make photostatic copies of a fraudulent check when the crash occurred.
Sergeant Leap was a WWI veteran and had served with the Merced Police Department for eight years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, two daughters, two sons, mother, two brothers, and one sister.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-98298AA2- 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 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.
Sergeant Leap gave the Merced Police Department 8 years.
Thank you for your service to the Merced 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
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
Edward G. Leap served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Sergeant Edward G. Leap 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 CA, 719 of 1,837 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 39.1% of this state's fallen. That is 8.1 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At Merced Police Department, 1 of 2 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 50% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Edward G. Leap's cause is highlighted.
How Edward G. Leap Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Edward G. Leap is highlighted in Nov.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
1 officer from Merced Police Department are honored on badge.nw.
