Roll of Honor
Incident
Patrolman Jacob Szwedowski was accidentally shot and killed when he was mistaken for a criminal while making an arrest on 113th Street between 5th Avenue and Madison Avenue in Harlem. Patrolman Szwedowski and another plainclothes officer had arrested a woman for stealing six dollars from a man. As they attempted to lead her away, she grabbed onto a light pole and started screaming that she was being kidnapped. A large crowd gathered around the officers, who both pulled out their revolvers. Patrolman Szwedowski fired a shot into the air to try to disperse the crowd. Another officer who was nearby heard the screaming and shot and came to investigate. When he saw the commotion, the officer fired three shots, not realizing that men were police officers, striking Patrolman Szwedowski once in the back. Patrolman Szwedowski was taken to Unity Hospital where succumbed to his wounds. Patrolman Szwedowski was assigned to West 123rd Street Station (modern day 24th Precinct) and had served with the agency for two years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and daughter.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-NY-993CEFCF- 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 Szwedowski gave the New York City Police Department 2 years.
Thank you for your service to the New York community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Szwedowski.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Patrolman Jacob Szwedowski 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. Jacob Szwedowski's cause is highlighted.
How Jacob Szwedowski Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Jacob Szwedowski is highlighted in Apr.
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.
