Roll of Honor
Incident
Court Officer Gerry Lynch died from complications as the result of contracting COVID-19 while serving as a court transportation officer.
Officer Lynch was a United States Army veteran who had served with the Mentor Police Department for at least a year and previously served with the Painesville Police Department for over 23 years and the Cleveland Heights Police Department for over five years.
COVID-19 and Law Enforcement
Court Officer Gerald F. Lynch died on October 3, 2021 of COVID-19 contracted in the line of duty. He was 56.
He is one of 884 officers honored here.
Beginning in early 2020, law enforcement officers across the country contracted COVID-19 in the course of their duties. While much of the nation sheltered at home, they kept answering calls, making arrests, transporting prisoners, and working face to face with the public. There was no distance to be had from the job.
Corrections officers were hit hardest. Confined facilities and large populations meant constant, close, unavoidable exposure.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife, three daughters, a brother, and a sister.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-OH-847C8511- 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
The country locked its doors. You kept working.
Court Officer Lynch gave the Mentor Police Department 30 years.
Thank you for your service to the Mentor community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Court Officer Lynch.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
Gerald F. Lynch served in the Army (1983â1986) before joining law enforcement.
Court Officer Gerald F. Lynch 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 OH, 49 of 991 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 4.9% of this state's fallen. That is 4.2 percentage points below the national rate of 9.1%.
At Mentor Police Department, 1 of 3 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 33.3% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Gerald F. Lynch's cause is highlighted.
How Gerald F. Lynch Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Gerald F. Lynch is highlighted in Oct.
Others Who Wore This Badge
2 officers from Mentor Police Department are honored on badge.nw.
