Roll of Honor
Incident
Sergeant James Blair was killed when his motorcycle was struck by a van on Penn Avenue near 30th Street in the Strip District while responding to a non-emergency call. The driver of the van made an illegal lane change to turn onto 30th Street when he struck the sidecar of Sergeant Blair's motorcycle, causing him to lose control of the motorcycle and strike a signal pole. Sergeant Blair was rushed to Mercy Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries several hours later. The 56-year-old driver was charged with vehicular homicide, making an illegal left turn, and two other violations in connection with the incident. Sergeant Blair was a U.S. Navy veteran of the Vietnam War and served with the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police for 20 years attached to the Traffic Division.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife and three sons.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-PA-A05060F0- 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.
Sergeant Blair gave the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police 20 years.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
James Thomas Blair served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Sergeant James Thomas Blair 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 PA, 417 of 1,261 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33.1% of this state's fallen. That is 2.1 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, 38 of 101 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 37.6% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. James Thomas Blair's cause is highlighted.
How James Thomas Blair Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. James Thomas Blair is highlighted in Nov.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
100 officers from Pittsburgh Bureau of Police are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
