Roll of Honor
Incident
Location: New York Incident Date: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 Weapon: Aircraft; Passenger jet Offender: 19 suicide attackers
Trooper First Class Walter Greene died from illnesses he contracted while inhaling toxic materials as he participated in the rescue and recovery efforts at the World Trade Center site following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.
Trooper Greene and his canine, along with other members of the Connecticut State Police's search and rescue team, had responded to the World Trade Center immediately following the attacks to search for possible survivors.
Trooper Greene was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and had served with the Connecticut State Police for 28 years.
September 11, 2001 - The Years After
Trooper First Class Walter Greene, Jr. was assigned to the search and recovery at the World Trade Center site after September 11, 2001. He was 35 years old that fall.
He died on May 31, 2018 - 16 years and 8 months later - of an illness contracted there. He was 51.
He is one of 599 officers honored here, and one of 2 at Connecticut State Police.
The most recent of these deaths was October 24, 2025.
Officers who worked the search, rescue, and recovery at the World Trade Center site breathed contaminated air for weeks and months afterward. Many developed cancers and respiratory disease, and they have gone on dying of it ever since.
Seventy-two officers were killed on the morning itself. Hundreds more have died in the years that followed. They are honored here together, because the same attack killed them all. With some it simply took longer.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife and three sons.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CT-DC556DFE- 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
You walked into it and it took years to finish the job.
Trooper First Class Greene gave the Connecticut State Police 28 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of Connecticut. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Trooper First Class Greene.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
Walter Greene, Jr. served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Trooper First Class Walter Greene, Jr. is one of 2,974 officers lost to illness connected to their service across the full record of this memorial — 9.1% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In CT, 7 of 169 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 4.1% of this state's fallen. That is 5 percentage points below the national rate of 9.1%.
At Connecticut State Police, 2 of 26 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 7.7% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Walter Greene, Jr.'s cause is highlighted.
How Walter Greene, Jr. Compares
Offender Outcome
19 suicide attackers
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Walter Greene, Jr. is highlighted in May.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
25 officers from Connecticut State Police are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
