John J. Bennett
Agency patch
Patrolman

John J. Bennett

Salem Police Department — Salem, MA
Accident
End of Watch October 13, 1955
Age 57
Tour of Duty 30 yrs
The Vigil Panel 91 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Patrolman John Bennett succumbed to injuries sustained 25 days earlier when he was struck by a vehicle while on duty in front of Salem High School at 3:00 pm. He remained in a coma from the time of the incident until his death. Patrolman Bennett had served with the Salem Police Department for 30 years.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife and two children.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-MA-7D0809BC
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

30 years. You could have gone home.
Patrolman Bennett gave the Salem Police Department 30 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the Salem community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Bennett.

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

Agency

Location Salem, MA
Platform Identity salepd.essex.ma.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch October 13, 1955
Tour of Duty 30 yrs
Age 57
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Patrolman John J. Bennett 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 MA, 158 of 469 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33.7% of this state's fallen. That is 2.7 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.

At Salem Police Department, 3 of 3 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 100% of this agency's fallen.

Salem Police Department
3
of 3 officers
100% Accident
MA — Statewide
158
of 469 officers
33.7% 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. John J. Bennett'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 John J. Bennett Compares

Age at End of Watch
57
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
30
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. John J. Bennett is highlighted in Oct.

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

Others Who Wore This Badge

2 officers from Salem Police Department are honored on badge.nw.