The first Bristol Policeman killed in the line of duty was a ten year veteran of the force, thirty-nine year old James McNamee. During his era of service, standard police arrest procedures were not yet in existence, and as a result, a routine mistake cost him his life.

On the night of January 16, 1930, Officer McNamee received a report to be on the lookout for a stolen car. As he walked his beat, he entered the intersection of Washington Street and Stafford Avenue where he noticed a suspicious car gassing up at the Ebb Brother's filling station. The vehicle was occupied by four nervous teenagers, who earlier in the day had stolen the car and robbed a gas station in Cheshire. "Who owns the car boys?" asked the officer. "It belongs to my father," was the reply from one of the four young men. "Well, I have a complaint about this car so I will have to take you to the station." said the patrolman. The officer then tried to commandeer the vehicle and it's four passengers when a shot rang out. James Brophy, a backseat passenger, fired a single shot into the back of the policeman with a .38 caliber pistol.

McNamee fell to the ground and the car sped off. "Boys, I'm done for," he told the Ebb brothers .The two gas station attendants carried the stricken officer inside and called an ambulance. He lived long enough for Chief Belden to rush to his side at the Bristol Hospital. "Chief, they got me this time, " said the wounded officer. Several years earlier, Officer McNamee had single handedly captured three burglars robbing a store next to the gas station where his shooting occurred. He arrested and held all three captive until more police arrived, but this time around, the luck of the Irish was not with him.

At the time, this event prompted the largest police manhunt in Connecticut State history. A few tips led the law enforcement effort to the wooded area outside of Waterbury. Two gunfights ensued, and a state police officer was wounded before the triggerman, James Brophy, age nineteen, and the other three accomplices were apprehended. Brophy was convicted of second degree manslaughter and sentenced to life in prison. The other three men involved with the crime were all convicted of manslaughter.

Officer McNamee, who was single, left behind a mother and several siblings. He was an Irish immigrant and a decorated World War 1 Veteran. One of his obituaries stated, "Officer McNamee was very popular with all who knew him. His usual smile, his quite and cheerful disposition, made him a host of friends. His quiet demeanor, his fearlessness in danger earned him the confidence of his superiors and his fellow townsmen."

Submitted on June 01, 2001 By:

Daniel McNamee of Brooklyn, NY.
(Grand-Nephew of James McNamee)