Roll of Honor
Incident
Patrolman William O'Brien was struck and killed by a vehicle at the intersection of 31st Street and 7th Avenue while on a special traffic detail for the arrival of the President of Mexico. As a fire truck responding to a call approached the intersection, Patrolman O'Brien attempted to halt traffic. A vehicle that failed to stop and entered the intersection. The car was struck by the fire truck and pushed into Patrolman O'Brien. He was knocked down underneath a nearby taxi. He was transported to St. Vincent's Hospital, where he died one hour later. Patrolman O'Brien was assigned to the 10th Precinct and had served with the New York City Police Department for 15 years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and four children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-NY-3718D17B- 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 O'Brien gave the New York City Police Department 15 years.
Thank you for your service to the New York community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman O'Brien.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Patrolman William F. O'Brien 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 NY, 645 of 2,147 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 30% of this state's fallen. That is 1 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At New York City Police Department, 283 of 1237 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 22.9% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William F. O'Brien's cause is highlighted.
How William F. O'Brien Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William F. O'Brien is highlighted in May.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
1,236 officers from New York City Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
