Line of Duty Deaths - 2000s

GARY LINDELL

Commission Date: March 16, 1965
Detective - Died: March 13, 2002

Gary Lindell spent a long career at with the Seattle Police Department, working as a Patrol Officer until he was promoted as a Detective in 1972. In 1997 he joined the mounted patrol (horse) unit. In March of 1999, Gary fell from his horse during a training exercise and sustained a head injury, requiring him to be hospitalized for three weeks in critical condition. Officer Lindell survived the accident, but the effects from the fall caused him to retire in November 1999. He came back to SPD as a civilian employee, working as an evidence warehouser and then a utility laborer. In March of 2002, lingering complications from his earlier head injury caused his death. He was survived by his wife of 38 years, three children, and two granddaughters.

JACKSON V. LONE

Commission Date: April 21, 1987
Harbor Patrol Officer - Died: March 16, 2005

On March 16, 2005, Harbor Patrol Officer Jackson Lone was responding to a call on the Lake Union waterway. He went ashore to tie off a tugboat and fell into the water. He was pulled from the water by his partner, and response crews from Harbor Patrol and the North Precinct began CPR. Officer Lone was treated by the Seattle Fire Department medics at the scene and then transported to Harborview Medical Center, where he later died. Officer Lone, 39 years of age and an 18-year veteran of the Seattle Police Department, worked in a variety of assignments including patrol in the East Precinct, Narcotics Unit and Fugitive Warrants Unit, as well as a year-long assignment with the DEA Task Force. Officer Lone was survived by his wife and his 18-month old son.

JOSELITO A. "LITO" BARBER

Commission Date: January 31, 2006
Patrol Officer - Died: August 13, 2006

On Sunday, August 13th, 2006, at 4:09 A.M., East Precinct Officer Joselito Barber was on routine patrol in the Central District. While entering an intersection on a green light, a speeding SUV ran the red light and collided into his patrol car. Officer Barber was unresponsive at the scene and was transported to Harborview Medical Center where he was pronounced dead. He was 26 years old.

A recent graduate of the police academy, Officer Barber was commissioned as a police officer on Jan 31, 2006. Officer "Lito" Barber was described by his family as loving his job as a police officer, and that joining the SPD was a realization of his goals. Friends remember him as kind-hearted and “always smiling.” Fellow officers remember Officer Barber as caring, conscientious and enthusiastic. Officer Barber’s sudden and tragic loss will be greatly felt in the community he served and he will be deeply missed by his large network of family, friends and co-workers.