Deputy Vernon P. Marconnet

Deputy Vernon P. Marconnet

Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, Arizona

End of Watch Thursday, June 30, 1988

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Vernon P. Marconnet

Deputy Vernon Marconnet was shot and killed after he stopped to investigate two suspicious vehicles near a canal bank along S. Carver Road around 32nd Avenue.

He found a father and three sons who had been drinking and arguing. Just after Deputy Marconnet called for backup, a 911 call was received stating that an officer was in trouble. When officers arrived they found Deputy Marconnet dead beside his car. All four subjects were arrested and charged with murder.

An investigation revealed when Deputy Marconnet was putting the older man into the patrol car, one of his sons grabbed the deputy's police radio and hit him in the head with it causing a deep gash. Another son grabbed his gun and forced Deputy Marconnet to lie on the ground. Ordered by his father, he shot Deputy Marconnet in the head killing him instantly.

The father and the two sons who attacked and shot Deputy Marconnet were convicted of his murder and sentenced to death. Their sentences were later commuted to life. The third son entered into a plea bargain arrangement and was sentenced to 10 years. The son who was sentenced to life was denied parole in 2021.

Deputy Marconnet had served with the agency for 19 years. He was survived by his wife, two sons, and two daughters.

Bio

  • Age 51
  • Tour 19 years
  • Badge Not available

Incident Details

  • Cause Gunfire
  • Weapon Officer's handgun
  • Offender Sentenced to life

suspicious vehicle

Most Recent Reflection

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Heavenly Father, I come before You today grieved in heart over the divisions in our country; the United States of America. I grieve for every life lost to violence, regardless of color or creed. And I especially grieve this day over the senseless deaths of America’s Peace Officers whose sworn duty is to protect us from harm. Please grant comfort and hope to their families. I know from the Holy Scriptures in Romans 13 that Peace Officers have a sacred task, to enforce laws that protect the innocent and punish the guilty. I pray that You will protect them as they serve us. Give them wisdom, discernment, and a deep desire to serve You. Please surround every Peace Officer in our nation, the United States of America, with battalions of warring angels to protect them from harm. I stand in the powerful and mighty name of the Lord Jesus Christ against every work of Satan intended to inflict injury and death on our Protectors. May Satan’s power be thwarted, in Your mighty and holy name, and his plans exposed by Your Light. In the mighty and holy name of the Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior, our Redeemer, and the Mediator between us, Heavenly Father, in prayer, and by His authority, I pray! Amen.

Please find Encouragement, Comfort, Support, and Hope from God's Word:

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”
[Matthew 5:9 ESV];

"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." [Psalm 23:4 ESV];

"Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends."
[John 15:13 ESV];

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." [Matthew 5:4 ESV];

"And he [Jesus] said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise." [Luke 23:43 ESV], and;

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." [John 3:16 ESV].

Chaplain Steven R. Closs, DDiv, MSBS, NACM, NCCA
Ordained Independent NACM Minister
The Badge 183 Peacemakers Prayer Ministry
Member: Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers - USA

Captain Steven R. Closs (Retired)
Nashua NH Police Department (1974-1998)

July 1, 2025

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