Roll of Honor
Incident
Patrolman William Burmeister was killed in a motorcycle crash while en route to escort a funeral procession that had left Barberton and was making its way through Cleveland. Patrolman Burmeister was traveling southbound on East 131st Street. As he attempted to pass Gay Avenue, a truck ran a stop sign and pulled out in front of him, and he hit the side of the truck head-first. Patrolman Burmeister suffered a broken neck from the impact and was transported to St. Luke's Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Patrolman Burmeister had served with the Cleveland Division of Police for six years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, two daughters, and a son.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-OH-990F11DF- 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 Burmeister gave the Cleveland Division of Police 6 years.
Thank you for your service to the Cleveland community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Burmeister.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Patrolman William Burmeister 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 OH, 318 of 991 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 32.1% of this state's fallen. That is 1.1 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At Cleveland Division of Police, 24 of 119 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 20.2% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William Burmeister's cause is highlighted.
How William Burmeister Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William Burmeister is highlighted in Oct.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
118 officers from Cleveland Division of Police are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
