Philip A. LaMonica
Agency patch
Detective

Philip A. LaMonica

Accident
End of Watch September 21, 1952
Age 45
Tour of Duty 14 yrs
Badge 2068
The Vigil Panel 88 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Detective Philip LaMonica was shot and killed while attempting to arrest three notorious criminals who had escaped from the federal prison in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. The three had also held up several banks and gun shops. Detective LaMonica and several other officers went to an apartment at 500 West 140th Street in Manhattan to arrest the suspects. When they arrived, shots were fired, and Detective LaMonica was shot twice. The second shot to hit him killed him instantly. The second shot was fired by another patrolman and hit Detective LaMonica after ricocheting off the weapon of one of the suspects. Detective LaMonica had served with the New York City Police Department for 14 years and was assigned to the 42nd Detective Squad.

Survivors

He is survived by his wife.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-NY-619A304B
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.
Detective LaMonica gave the New York City Police Department 14 years.
Thank you for your service to the New York community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Detective LaMonica.

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

Agency

Location New York, NY
Platform Identity nypd.newyork.ny.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch September 21, 1952
Tour of Duty 14 yrs
Age 45
Badge Number 2068
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident
Weapon of one of the suspects.

Detective Philip A. LaMonica 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.

New York City Police Department
283
of 1,237 officers
22.9% Accident
NY — Statewide
645
of 2,147 officers
30% 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. Philip A. LaMonica'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 Philip A. LaMonica Compares

Age at End of Watch
45
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
14
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Philip A. LaMonica is highlighted in Sep.

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

Incident Location