Bio & Incident Details
Age: Not available
Tour: Not available
Badge # Not available
Cause: Gunfire
Incident Date: 5/1/1969
Weapon: Officer's handgun
Suspect: Acquitted
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Officer Joseph Brodnik was shot and killed when he and his partner stopped two suspicious youths on Alvarado Street.
Officer Brodnik and his partner were working a burglary suppression unit, in plain clothes, and were operating an unmarked car in the Mission District.
The suspects were part of a larger group of seven juveniles and they had just committed a daytime burglary. During the confrontation, one of the youths grabbed Officer Brodnik's partner's gun and shot Officer Brodnik, killing him. His partner sustained severe injuries from being beaten by the juveniles.
Six suspects were arrested and acquitted at trial. The seventh suspect fled the country. The suspect believed to have killed Officer Brodnik was later killed in prison. He had been sent to prison for committing an armed robbery in which he was shot and wounded by a San Francisco police officer.
Officer Brodnik is survived by his wife and three children. One of Officer Brodnik's sons later became a San Francisco police officer.
