Joseph K. Siepak
Agency patch
Detective Sergeant

Joseph K. Siepak

Detroit Police Department — Detroit, MI
Accident
End of Watch January 26, 1971
Age 52
Tour of Duty 23 yrs
The Vigil Panel 108 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Sergeant Siepak died of injuries he received in an automobile accident at Michigan Avenue and Sixth Street 15 days earlier.

Survivors

Sergeant Siepak had served with the Detroit Police Department for 23 years and was survived by his wife and child.

In Our Keeping

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Added to badge.nw
August 2, 2026
Last updated
August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

23 years. You could have gone home.
Detective Sergeant Siepak gave the Detroit Police Department 23 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the Detroit community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Detective Sergeant Siepak.

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

Agency

Type Police Department
Location Detroit, Wayne County, MI
Platform Identity detpd.wayne.mi.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch January 26, 1971
Tour of Duty 23 yrs
Age 52
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

The Sacrifice · Accident

Joseph is one of 8,275 officers lost to accidents in the United States, 30% of the 27,551 remembered there.

34,117 officers are remembered on this memorial. Each number below is one of them.

  1. See the roll
  2. See the roll
Compare against
I

Time

In 1971, 79 officers in the United States were lost to accidents, the 29th heaviest of 174 years on record. The heaviest was 1929, with 118.

Every year on record · United States
II

Who

Joseph was 52. Of the 7,718 lost to accidents in the United States whose age is recorded, half were between 29 and 46; the middle age was 36. Joseph had served 23 years; the middle length of service was 6 years.

Age at death
Where he stood among them
Age by years of service
III

When

January holds 7.7% of these deaths in the United States; August holds the most, 9.5%. Tuesdays: 14.1%.

By month
By day of the week
IV

How

Accident deaths account for 30% of all 27,551 deaths in the United States, the 2nd most common cause.

Every cause
Weapons recorded
V

His people

Detroit Police Department has at least 120 officers remembered here, Joseph among them.

Across the years
VI

Where

Detective Sergeant Joseph K. Siepak

Detroit Police Department · End of Watch January 26, 1971

Where the Name Is Cut

National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial · Panel 56-W

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