Incident
Patrolman William Burgholzer suffered a fatal heart attack while searching for several suspects who had just robbed a grocery store. He was assisting at a roadblock and had stopped a bus. As he began to search the bus he collapsed.
Patrolman Burgholzer had served with the Oswego Police Department for 17 years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and two children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-IL-AC488922- 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.
Patrolman Burgholzer gave the Oswego Police Department 17 years.
Thank you for your service to the Oswego community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Burgholzer.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Patrolman William A. Burgholzer, Jr. is one of 1,306 officers lost to cardiac events in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 4% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In IL, 45 of 1,318 officers were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 3.4% of this state's fallen. That is 0.6 percentage points below the national rate of 4%.
National Cause Distribution
How Cardiac compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William A. Burgholzer, Jr.'s cause is highlighted.
How William A. Burgholzer, Jr. Compares
When Cardiac Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Cardiac deaths across the full memorial record. William A. Burgholzer, Jr. is highlighted in Jan.