Otto G. Ostby
Agency patch
Officer

Otto G. Ostby

Minneapolis Police Department — Minneapolis, MN
Accident
End of Watch May 19, 1915
Age 28
Tour of Duty 5 yrs
The Vigil Panel 30 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Officer Ostby was killed when his police motorcycle struck the rear of a streetcar on Bloomington Avenue as he responded to a burglary call. As he attempted to pass the streetcar an automobile suddenly turned into his path. Officer Ostby attempted to avoid striking the car and struck the rear fender of the streetcar.

Survivors

Officer Ostby had been with the agency for five years and was survived by his wife and 5-year-old daughter.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-MN-A24FAA52
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.
Officer Ostby gave the Minneapolis Police Department 5 years.
Thank you for your service to the Minneapolis community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Officer Ostby.

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

Agency

Location Minneapolis, MN
Platform Identity mpd.hennepin.mn.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch May 19, 1915
Tour of Duty 5 yrs
Age 28
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Officer Otto G. Ostby 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 MN, 84 of 293 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 28.7% of this state's fallen. That is 2.3 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.

At Minneapolis Police Department, 15 of 50 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 30% of this agency's fallen.

Minneapolis Police Department
15
of 50 officers
30% Accident
MN — Statewide
84
of 293 officers
28.7% 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. Otto G. Ostby'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 Otto G. Ostby Compares

Age at End of Watch
28
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
5
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Otto G. Ostby is highlighted in May.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
707
May
847
Jun
795
Jul
897
Aug
937
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897