Chicago Police Department, Illinois
End of Watch: Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Age: 60
Tour of Duty: 27 years
Badge Number: 5276
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: July 2, 2008
Weapon Used: Officer's handgun
Suspect Info: Sentenced to life
Police Officer Richard Francis was shot and killed with his service weapon as he struggled with a woman who grabbed his gun and shot him once.
He had responded to a disturbance at 2:00 a.m. and approached a woman near the Belmont Area (Area 3) Headquarters at 2452 W. Belmont Avenue. Backup officers responding to the shooting opened fire on the woman when she threatened them. She was critically wounded.
Officer Francis was transported to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center where he was pronounced dead at 2:57 a.m.
On February 5th, 2014, the woman was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life without parole.
Officer Francis served with the Chicago Police Department for 27 years and was assigned to the 019 District. He is survived by his wife and two stepdaughters.