Portland Police Department, Maine
End of Watch: Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Age: 52
Tour of Duty: 20 years
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Heart attack
Date of Incident: January 13, 2009
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Sergeant Richard Betters suffered a fatal heart attack after evacuating residents from a burning building. After the evacuation he remained on scene and assisted with the investigation.
He completed his shift, which involved attending the funeral of a police department employee, before returning home. He suffered a heart attack overnight.
Sergeant Betters had served with the Portland Police Department for 20 years. He is survived by his wife and two children.