Roll of Honor
Incident
Patrolman Bessner suffered a fatal heart attack following a struggle with a motorist. He and his partner were attempting to arrest the man when he began to struggle.
Survivors
Patrolman Bessner had been with the agency for 18 years and was survived by his wife and two sons.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-MN-0485B337- 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 Bessner gave the Minneapolis Police Department 18 years.
Thank you for your service to the Minneapolis community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Bessner.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Patrolman Leo M. Bessner 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 MN, 26 of 293 officers were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 8.9% of this state's fallen. That is 4.9 percentage points above the national rate of 4%.
At Minneapolis Police Department, 3 of 50 officers on record were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 6% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Cardiac compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Leo M. Bessner's cause is highlighted.
How Leo M. Bessner Compares
When Cardiac Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Cardiac deaths across the full memorial record. Leo M. Bessner is highlighted in May.
Others Who Wore This Badge
49 officers from Minneapolis Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
