Roll of Honor
Incident
Officer Christopher Nicholson was shot and killed while responding to assist members of the Washington County Sheriff's Office at a call involving reports that a man had just murdered his girlfriend during a domestic disturbance.
The officer parked his patrol car a short distance away from the home to wait for additional units to arrive. As he waited, the suspect drove towards his patrol car and then opened fire as he pulled even to the officer's door. A rifled slug struck Officer Nicholson in the chest above his vest at the arm pit area.
Despite being mortally wounded, Officer Nicholson was able to return fire, emptying his service weapon into the suspect's car as he fled.
The suspect fled into a nearby cemetery, where he engaged members of the Special Response Team in a shootout. The man was wounded and taken into custody; he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Officer Nicholson was flown to a local hospital where he succumbed to his wounds.
Officer Nicholson had served with the Smithsburg Police Department for just over 1 year and had previously served with the Maryland Division of Correction.
Survivors
He is survived by his mother, father, brother, and girlfriend.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-MD-608F95A7- 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 barely got started.
Police Officer Nicholson gave the Smithsburg Police Department 1 year.
Thank you for your service to the Smithsburg community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Nicholson.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Police Officer Christopher Nicholson is one of 17,623 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 54.2% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In MD, 195 of 377 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 51.7% of this state's fallen. That is 2.5 percentage points below the national rate of 54.2%.
National Cause Distribution
How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Christopher Nicholson's cause is highlighted.
How Christopher Nicholson Compares
Offender Outcome
Sentenced to life without parole
When Felonious Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Christopher Nicholson is highlighted in Dec.
Weapons Used Against Officers
Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. Christopher Nicholson was killed by shotgun.