Dennis Ray McElderry
Agency patch
Deputy Sheriff

Dennis Ray McElderry

Accident
End of Watch January 3, 2003
Age 45
Tour of Duty 4 yrs
The Vigil Panel 150 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Deputy Sheriff Dennis McElderry was struck and killed by a patrol car after deploying stop sticks during a high-speed pursuit on U.S. Highway 63 just north of Bloomfield, Iowa, shortly before midnight.

The suspect, who was being chased, later turned himself in and was charged with vehicular manslaughter. The suspect was convicted of charges related to Deputy McElderry's death and was sentenced to 12 years in jail.

Deputy McElderry had served with the Davis County Sheriff's Department for four years.

Survivors

He is survived by his three children, fiancee, parents, and two sisters.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-IA-D67BD986
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.
Deputy Sheriff McElderry gave the Davis County Sheriff's Department 4 years.
Thank you for your service to the Bloomfield community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Sheriff McElderry.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Location Bloomfield, IA
Platform Identity dcso.davis.ia.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch January 3, 2003
Tour of Duty 4 yrs
Age 45
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident
Cause Detail Vehicle pursuit
Weapon Automobile
Offender Sentenced to 12 years

Deputy Sheriff Dennis Ray McElderry 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 IA, 71 of 226 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 31.4% of this state's fallen. That is 0.4 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.

Davis County Sheriff's Department
1
of 1 officers
100% Accident
IA — Statewide
71
of 226 officers
31.4% Accident
Nationwide
10,088
of 32,508 officers
31% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Dennis Ray McElderry's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
17,623 (54.2%)
Accident
10,088 (31%)
Illness
2,974 (9.1%)
Cardiac
1,306 (4%)
Undetermined
260 (0.8%)
Suicide
256 (0.8%)
vehicular
1 (0%)

How Dennis Ray McElderry Compares

Age at End of Watch
45
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
4
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

Offender Outcome

Sentenced to 12 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Dennis Ray McElderry is highlighted in Jan.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
707
May
847
Jun
795
Jul
897
Aug
937
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897

Incident Location