"When a police officer is killed, it's not an agency that loses an officer, it's an entire nation." -Chris Cosgriff, ODMP Founder
Patrolman John Lynch
Boston Police Department, Massachusetts
End of Watch: Tuesday, September 19, 1944
Age: 57
In October 1936, Boston police Officer John Lynch was on patrol in Jamaica Plain when he tried to arrest a man for drunkenness — a powerful, far younger man who had been a boxer. Lynch, an Irish native and veteran of World War I, was viciously beaten, sustaining serious head injuries.
By 1941, when Lynch was no longer on active duty, his memory and judgment was impaired, and his attention span was "so poor that it was difficult to get him to carry out even the simplest commands." A doctor concluded he was suffering from a subdural hematoma.
Lynch was never the same. He continued on his beat, but became forgetful, and needed constant assistance from his partners. In time, it was hard for him even to recognize fellow officers, even longtime friends. By 1940, he could no longer work, and he died four years later, at 57.
In the past few years, researchers have combed through city archives to determine that several officers had died from injuries sustained in the line of duty, some more than a century ago. Walter Harris died in 1906 after being thrown from his horse, and Cornelius Regan died after rescuing a drowning man on Christmas Day in 1897. He became ill and died three weeks later.
In 2011, the names of both men were added to the national memorial, two curving, marble walls carved with the names of more than 19,000 officers.
Seventy years later, Officer Lynch is being honored for dying in the line of duty, his sacrifice dutifully brought to light by Boston Police Department researchers. In May, his name will join the ranks of the fallen at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, rectifying a historical oversight and delighting a family who only recently learned the full truth.
My Notes:
The husband of Catherine Meagher. Catherine was born in Northern Ireland.
John and Catherine were the parents of:
Mary E. Lynch Sennott (1919–2005)
Anna Jane Lynch Chmielinski (1921–1998)
Michael James Lynch (1924–2013)
Bernard John Lynch (1929–2008)
Patrolman John Lynch
Boston Police Department, Massachusetts
End of Watch: Tuesday, September 19, 1944
Age: 57
In October 1936, Boston police Officer John Lynch was on patrol in Jamaica Plain when he tried to arrest a man for drunkenness — a powerful, far younger man who had been a boxer. Lynch, an Irish native and veteran of World War I, was viciously beaten, sustaining serious head injuries.
By 1941, when Lynch was no longer on active duty, his memory and judgment was impaired, and his attention span was "so poor that it was difficult to get him to carry out even the simplest commands." A doctor concluded he was suffering from a subdural hematoma.
Lynch was never the same. He continued on his beat, but became forgetful, and needed constant assistance from his partners. In time, it was hard for him even to recognize fellow officers, even longtime friends. By 1940, he could no longer work, and he died four years later, at 57.
In the past few years, researchers have combed through city archives to determine that several officers had died from injuries sustained in the line of duty, some more than a century ago. Walter Harris died in 1906 after being thrown from his horse, and Cornelius Regan died after rescuing a drowning man on Christmas Day in 1897. He became ill and died three weeks later.
In 2011, the names of both men were added to the national memorial, two curving, marble walls carved with the names of more than 19,000 officers.
Seventy years later, Officer Lynch is being honored for dying in the line of duty, his sacrifice dutifully brought to light by Boston Police Department researchers. In May, his name will join the ranks of the fallen at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, rectifying a historical oversight and delighting a family who only recently learned the full truth.
My Notes:
The husband of Catherine Meagher. Catherine was born in Northern Ireland.
John and Catherine were the parents of:
Mary E. Lynch Sennott (1919–2005)
Anna Jane Lynch Chmielinski (1921–1998)
Michael James Lynch (1924–2013)
Bernard John Lynch (1929–2008)
"When a police officer is killed, it's not an agency that loses an officer, it's an entire nation." -Chris Cosgriff, ODMP Founder
Patrolman John Lynch
Boston Police Department, Massachusetts
End of Watch: Tuesday, September 19, 1944
Age: 57
In October 1936, Boston police Officer John Lynch was on patrol in Jamaica Plain when he tried to arrest a man for drunkenness — a powerful, far younger man who had been a boxer. Lynch, an Irish native and veteran of World War I, was viciously beaten, sustaining serious head injuries.
By 1941, when Lynch was no longer on active duty, his memory and judgment was impaired, and his attention span was "so poor that it was difficult to get him to carry out even the simplest commands." A doctor concluded he was suffering from a subdural hematoma.
Lynch was never the same. He continued on his beat, but became forgetful, and needed constant assistance from his partners. In time, it was hard for him even to recognize fellow officers, even longtime friends. By 1940, he could no longer work, and he died four years later, at 57.
In the past few years, researchers have combed through city archives to determine that several officers had died from injuries sustained in the line of duty, some more than a century ago. Walter Harris died in 1906 after being thrown from his horse, and Cornelius Regan died after rescuing a drowning man on Christmas Day in 1897. He became ill and died three weeks later.
In 2011, the names of both men were added to the national memorial, two curving, marble walls carved with the names of more than 19,000 officers.
Seventy years later, Officer Lynch is being honored for dying in the line of duty, his sacrifice dutifully brought to light by Boston Police Department researchers. In May, his name will join the ranks of the fallen at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, rectifying a historical oversight and delighting a family who only recently learned the full truth.
My Notes:
The husband of Catherine Meagher. Catherine was born in Northern Ireland.
John and Catherine were the parents of:
Mary E. Lynch Sennott (1919–2005)
Anna Jane Lynch Chmielinski (1921–1998)
Michael James Lynch (1924–2013)
Bernard John Lynch (1929–2008)
Patrolman John Lynch
Boston Police Department, Massachusetts
End of Watch: Tuesday, September 19, 1944
Age: 57
In October 1936, Boston police Officer John Lynch was on patrol in Jamaica Plain when he tried to arrest a man for drunkenness — a powerful, far younger man who had been a boxer. Lynch, an Irish native and veteran of World War I, was viciously beaten, sustaining serious head injuries.
By 1941, when Lynch was no longer on active duty, his memory and judgment was impaired, and his attention span was "so poor that it was difficult to get him to carry out even the simplest commands." A doctor concluded he was suffering from a subdural hematoma.
Lynch was never the same. He continued on his beat, but became forgetful, and needed constant assistance from his partners. In time, it was hard for him even to recognize fellow officers, even longtime friends. By 1940, he could no longer work, and he died four years later, at 57.
In the past few years, researchers have combed through city archives to determine that several officers had died from injuries sustained in the line of duty, some more than a century ago. Walter Harris died in 1906 after being thrown from his horse, and Cornelius Regan died after rescuing a drowning man on Christmas Day in 1897. He became ill and died three weeks later.
In 2011, the names of both men were added to the national memorial, two curving, marble walls carved with the names of more than 19,000 officers.
Seventy years later, Officer Lynch is being honored for dying in the line of duty, his sacrifice dutifully brought to light by Boston Police Department researchers. In May, his name will join the ranks of the fallen at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, rectifying a historical oversight and delighting a family who only recently learned the full truth.
My Notes:
The husband of Catherine Meagher. Catherine was born in Northern Ireland.
John and Catherine were the parents of:
Mary E. Lynch Sennott (1919–2005)
Anna Jane Lynch Chmielinski (1921–1998)
Michael James Lynch (1924–2013)
Bernard John Lynch (1929–2008)
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