Roll of Honor
William Dewitt Talbert
Incident
Police Officer Bill Talbert died as the result of contracting Hepatitis C.
He contracted the disease following a blood transfusion after being struck by a drunk driver while conducting a traffic stop on June 30th, 1983. He was standing between his patrol car and another vehicle when a drunk driver struck one of the vehicles, causing Officer Talbert to be pinned between them. He was transported to a local hospital where he underwent a blood transfusion. It was discovered later that the blood he received was infected with Hepatitis C.
He was forced to medically retire in 1984 and his health continued to deteriorate until he passed away on January 27th, 2012.
Officer Talbert was a U.S. Navy veteran and had served with the Montgomery County Police Department for 13 years when he was forced to retire. He is survived by his wife, daughter, three sons, ten grandchildren, and sister. One of his sons went on to serve with the Maryland State Police.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife, daughter, three sons, ten grandchildren, and sister.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-MD-DBD52F97- 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 served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Police Officer Talbert gave the Montgomery County Police Department 13 years.
Thank you for your service to the Gaithersburg community. Thank you for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
William Dewitt Talbert served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Police Officer William Dewitt Talbert 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 MD, 15 of 377 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 4% of this state's fallen. That is 5.1 percentage points below the national rate of 9.1%.
At Montgomery County Police Department, 1 of 21 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 4.8% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William Dewitt Talbert's cause is highlighted.
How William Dewitt Talbert Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. William Dewitt Talbert is highlighted in Jan.
Others Who Wore This Badge
20 officers from Montgomery County Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
