Officer Down Memorial Page - http://www.odmp.org

Detective William Francis Mertz | Bloomfield Police Department, New Jersey
Bloomfield Police Department, New Jersey

Detective

William Francis Mertz

Bloomfield Police Department, New Jersey

End of Watch: Saturday, December 18, 1915

Biographical Info

Age:
Tour of Duty: Not available
Badge Number: Not available

Incident Details

Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: December 15, 1915
Weapon Used: Handgun; Revolver
Suspect Info: Sentence commuted to life

Detective William Mertz and Detective Robert Shannon, of the East Orange Police Department, were shot and killed while they and two other officers attempted to arrest a murder suspect. The other two officers were wounded. Detective Mertz succumbed to his wounds three days after the shooting.

The 57-year-old suspect was apprehended in Newburg, New York, on August 27, 1916. Two months later he was convicted of two counts of murder and sentenced to death. His sentence was later commuted to life.