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Detective

James Garvey

New York City Police Department — New York, NY

Felonious

End of Watch April 21, 1934

Age 45

Tour of Duty 21 yrs

Badge 20

The Vigil Panel 68 ›

Gender Male

Incident Media Service The Sacrifice Memorials 1 Department 1,221

Incident

James J. Garvey was the son of Irish immigrants; his mother, Eliza, came from County Clare and his father from County Cork. He joined the New York City Police Department on 7 April 1913 and earned his detective's gold shield on 10 March 1921. He served for many years at the West 135th Street station house in Harlem and later with the 20th Detective Squad on the Upper West Side, where he rose to detective first grade.

After a rash of hold-ups, he and his partner, Detective Francis G. Gleason, were patrolling the streets of the 20th Precinct. At about eleven on the night of 21 April 1934 they shadowed two men for some fifteen minutes, and as they moved in to question them at Broadway and West 75th Street, the men drew guns and opened fire without warning. Detective Garvey was killed. Gleason was shot in the chest and badly wounded, and a woman passing by was hit in the leg. The gunmen escaped. Garvey was 45 and had served 21 years.

Some ten thousand mourners attended his Inspector's funeral at the Church of St. Philip Neri in the Bronx on 25 April 1934. He lived on the Grand Concourse and was survived by his wife, Pauline, and their 17-year-old daughter. He was buried in Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Westchester.

Survivors

Detective Garvey was survived by his wife and daughter.

In Our Keeping

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Last updated: October 17, 2026

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Tributes

21 years. You could have gone home.
Detective Garvey gave the New York City Police Department 21 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the New York community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Detective Garvey.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Department New York City Police Department

Type Police Department

Location New York, NY

Platform Identity nypd.newyork.ny.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch April 21, 1934

Tour of Duty 21 yrs

Age 45

Badge Number 20

Gender Male

Assignment 20 Detective Squad

Incident Details

Cause Felonious

Weapon Gun

The Sacrifice · Felonious

James is one of 15,743 officers killed feloniously in the United States, 57.1% of the 27,551 remembered there.

33,917 officers are remembered on this memorial. Each number below is one of them.

Compare against

Time

In 1934, 178 officers in the United States were killed feloniously, the 16th heaviest of 213 years on record. The heaviest was 1921, with 248.

Every year on record · United States

Who

James was 45. Of the 14,220 killed feloniously in the United States whose age is recorded, half were between 31 and 47; the middle age was 38. James had served 21 years; the middle length of service was 6 years.

Age at death

Where he stood among them

Age by years of service

III

When

April holds 8.4% of these deaths in the United States; December holds the most, 9.4%. Saturdays: 16.3%.

By month

By day of the week

How

Felonious deaths account for 57.1% of all 27,551 deaths in the United States, the most common cause. The weapon recorded was gun, in 22.8% of these deaths.

Every cause

Weapons recorded