Palm Beach Police Department, Florida
End of Watch Wednesday, June 6, 1923
Add to My HeroesJoseph Nelson Smith
Police Officer Joseph Smith succumbed to a gunshot wound sustained three days earlier when he encountered three men leaving a beach carrying turtle eggs and turtle meat.
The day after his death, the body of his suspected killer was found hanging from a tree in Palm Beach.
Officer Smith had served with the Palm Beach Police Department for 3 years. He was survived by a brother who also served with the agency at the time.
Bio
- Age 39
- Tour 3 years
- Badge Not available
Incident Details
- Cause Gunfire
- Incident Date Sunday, June 3, 1923
- Weapon Gun; Unknown type
- Offender Lynched
Most Recent Reflection
View all 10 ReflectionsFrom The Palm Beach Post, June 7, 1923: After three days fight for his life, Officer Joseph Smith died at Good Samaritan Hospital of a gunshot wound received while on duty on June 3, 1923. "The three men were accosted by Officer Smith when he met them riding on the county road on bicycles, laden with turtle meat and eggs. It was while questioning them in regard to the butchering of the turtle that he was shot." I did not know Officer Smith but I was fortunate to find a newspaper article regarding his sacrifice in a box held by the Historical Society of Palm Beach County. The memory of Off. Smith's heroic death was lost to memory in Palm Beach but has since been memorialized in all of the appropriate places including on a bronze plaque in front of the Palm Beach Police Department headquarters. His name appears there on a list that we hope has no additions.
Michael Reiter, Chief of Police (Ret.)
Palm Beach Police Department
March 14, 2024
Recent LODD Deaths
Detective Allan Reddins
Oak Park Police Department, IL
EOW: November 29, 2024
Police Officer Jesse Branch
Red Lake Nation Police Department, TR
EOW: November 27, 2024
Assistant Special Agent in Charge Joseph Love
United States Department of Homeland Security - Immigration and Customs Enforcement - Homeland Security Investigations, US
EOW: October 19, 2024
Police Officer Cooper Dawson
Greenville Police Department, TX
EOW: November 26, 2024
Deputy Sheriff Ignacio "Dan" Diaz
Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, FL
EOW: November 25, 2024
Deputy Constable Katherine Hutson
Harris County Constable's Office - Precinct 5, TX
EOW: November 22, 2024
Major Michelle Lynn Quintero
Madison County Sheriff's Office, NC
EOW: September 27, 2024
Deputy Sheriff Ralph "Butch" Waller, Jr.
Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, FL
EOW: November 21, 2024
Corporal Luis Paez
Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, FL
EOW: November 21, 2024