Bio & Incident Details
Age: 43
Tour: 14 years
Badge # Not available
Cause: Gunfire
Incident Date: 11/29/1971
Weapon: Handgun; Luger
Suspect: Deceased
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Sergeant Michael McNeil was shot and killed while questioning a member of a motorcycle gang. Sergeant McNeil was driving a police matron home when he witnessed a car travel through a red light. The vehicle matched the description of a car used in an armed robbery in the next town.
After stopping the vehicle, Sergeant McNeil noticed a discrepancy with the registration so he ordered the occupants of the car to follow him back to his station. He brought the driver inside to question him. When he went back outside to question the passengers he found they had escaped.
Sergeant McNeil called for back up and started to search for the remaining occupants of the car. He found one of the suspects on Chestnut Street and he ordered him into the patrol car. As Sergeant McNeil got back into the patrol car, the suspect shot him twice, killing him instantly.
The suspect escaped but was captured later in the morning in a neighboring city. The suspect was out on $50,000 bail for an assault in Connecticut and was also wanted for a separate murder. He was convicted of Sergeant McNeil's murder and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. He died in prison while serving the sentence.
Sergeant McNeil had served with the agency for 14 years. He was survived by his wife, daughter, three sons and two brothers. One of brothers also served as an Albany police officer.
