Incident
Trooper John Divers died after contracting septicemia while on duty in Florence Township in January 1930. Septicemia is a result of bacteria in the blood. Trooper Divers contracted the illness when an open wound on his finger came in contact with a suspect's blood during an arrest four months earlier. Trooper Divers was a United States Army WWI veteran and had served with the New Jersey State Police for eight years.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife and parents.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-NJ-9A612CFF- 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.
Trooper Divers gave the New Jersey State Police 8 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of New Jersey, and 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
John D. Divers served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Trooper John D. Divers 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 NJ, 77 of 646 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 11.9% of this state's fallen. That is 2.8 percentage points above the national rate of 9.1%.
At New Jersey State Police, 13 of 84 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 15.5% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. John D. Divers's cause is highlighted.
How John D. Divers Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. John D. Divers is highlighted in May.
Others Who Wore This Badge
83 officers from New Jersey State Police are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.















