Roll of Honor
John Charles Stratton, Jr.
Incident
Police Officer John Stratton suffered a fatal heart attack in the parking lot of the 7th Police District shortly after an arrest.
He and several officers responded to the intersection of Knights Road and Ellicott Road for a large fight. Three adults and five juveniles were arrested for disorderly conduct. Officer Stratton struggled with one of the adults as he attempted to place them in the back of the police vehicle. He complained of not feeling well on the way to the police station.
He suffered a fatal heart attack moments after arriving back at the police station to book the adult. He was rushed to Nazareth Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
Officer Stratton was a U.S. Army veteran of WWII and had served with the Philadelphia Police Department for four years.
Survivors
Survivors include his wife and three children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-PA-76F52604- 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 served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Police Officer Stratton gave the Philadelphia Police Department 4 years.
Thank you for your service to the Philadelphia community. Thank you for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
John Charles Stratton, Jr. served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Police Officer John Charles Stratton, Jr. is one of 1,306 officers lost to cardiac events in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 4% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In PA, 118 of 1,261 officers were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 9.4% of this state's fallen. That is 5.4 percentage points above the national rate of 4%.
At Philadelphia Police Department, 37 of 378 officers on record were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 9.8% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Cardiac compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. John Charles Stratton, Jr.'s cause is highlighted.
How John Charles Stratton, Jr. Compares
When Cardiac Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Cardiac deaths across the full memorial record. John Charles Stratton, Jr. is highlighted in Apr.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
377 officers from Philadelphia Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
