Roll of Honor
Incident
Patrolman Thomas Downey was struck and killed by a trolley car while directing traffic at Broad and Bridge Streets in Newark.
The trolley was pulling another trolley, and at Bridge Street, the front trolley made the switch, but the trailer swung onto Broad Street, striking Patrolman Downey while he stood in the intersection. He passed away while en route to St. Michael's Hospital.
Patrolman Downey had served with the Newark Police Department for seven years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and two children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-NJ-C7772213- 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 Downey gave the Newark Police Division 7 years.
Thank you for your service to the Newark community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Downey.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Patrolman Thomas J. Downey 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 NJ, 258 of 646 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 39.9% of this state's fallen. That is 8.9 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At Newark Police Division, 19 of 58 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 32.8% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Thomas J. Downey's cause is highlighted.
How Thomas J. Downey Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Thomas J. Downey is highlighted in Jan.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
57 officers from Newark Police Division are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
