Roll of Honor
Incident
Police Officer Robert Neelis died from complications of a gunshot wound sustained earlier in the morning when his partner's pistol was inadvertently discharged as it was handed between the two officers in the village police department.
The two had been practicing dry-firing their .38 caliber service revolvers but had reloaded them in preparation to return to patrol. The other officer then noticed he had a cut on his finger and believed it was the result of a defect on his gun. He was handing the gun to Officer Neelis to examine it when it was inadvertently discharged, striking Officer Neelis in the mouth. The wound itself was not considered fatal, however, he was disoriented while emerging from anesthesia following emergency surgery and he accidentally pulled the endotracheal tube from his throat. The tube's removal caused immediate complications and he died minutes later.
Officer Neelis had only served with the Springport Village Police Department for 3-1/2 weeks and also served with the Michigan Civil Air Patrol.
Survivors
He was survived by his parents and siblings.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-MI-AC0CCF0A- 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.
Are you family? This record can be claimed and maintained by those who knew Robert. Claim this record.
This page is permanent and free. No fee to view it, no advertising, no tracking, and no account required. It will not be taken down.
Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Police Officer Neelis served with the Springport Village Police Department.
Thank you for your service to the Springport community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Neelis.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Police Officer Robert Edward Neelis 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 MI, 229 of 718 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 31.9% of this state's fallen. That is 0.9 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Robert Edward Neelis's cause is highlighted.
How Robert Edward Neelis Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Robert Edward Neelis is highlighted in Nov.