# List of killings by law enforcement officers in the United States, 2002

This is a list of people reported killed by non-military law enforcement officers in the United States in 2002, whether in the line of duty or not, and regardless of reason or method. The listing documents the occurrence of a death, making no implications regarding wrongdoing or justification on the part of the person killed or officer involved. Killings are arranged by date of the incident that caused death. Different death dates, if known, are noted in the description. The table below lists 139 people.

## 2002

| Date | Name (age) of deceased | Race | State (city) | Description |
| 2002-12-31 | Lance Morton (43) | Unknown | Michigan (Garden City) | |
| 2002-12-31 | Michael Wetter (22) | Unknown | California (Riverside) | |
| 2002-12-31 | Robert J. Nusbaum (34) | White | Nevada (Las Vegas) | |
| 2002-12-31 | Howard J. Henry (24) | Unknown | Colorado (Longmount) | |
| 2002-12-28 | Donald Chronister (49) | Unknown | Oklahoma (Roland) | |
| 2002-12-28 | Ray H. Crow (77) | Unknown | Arkansas (Rogers) | |
| 2002-12-27 | Robert C. Guy (27) | Unknown | North Carolina (Franklinton) | |
| 2002-12-27 | Judd E. Daniels (31) | Unknown | Montana (Great Falls) | |
| 2002-12-26 | Michael A. Frenette (36) | White | Florida (St. Petersburg) | |
| 2002-12-25 | Montagna, Michael (45) | | Maine (Jefferson) | |
| 2002-12-24 | Michael Ellerbe (12) | Black | Pennsylvania (Uniontown) | |
| 2002-12-22 | Pundsack, Edward | | Wisconsin (Milwaukee) | |
| 2002-12-20 | Tammy Sanford (28) | White | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002‑12‑20 | Weigel, Bruce James | | Wyoming (south of Cheyenne) | Died of "mechanical asphyxiation" as a result of arresting state trooper putting weight on Weigel's back while handcuffing Weigel on the ground. The state of Wyoming settled a federal lawsuit for $500,000 in the case. |
| 2002-12-14 | Sum, Jimmy (44) | Asian | California (San Gabriel) | |
| 2002-12-12 | Ham III, James Lee | | Georgia (Tift County) | Died from injuries following police use of a PIT maneuver on suspect's vehicle. |
| 2002-12-09 | Dellacqua, Gino (45) | Latino | California (Lake View Terrace) | |
| 2002-12-05 | Diaz, Jose (26) | Latino | California (Boyle Heights) | |
| 2002-12-05 | Taylor, James E. | Black | Kentucky (Louisville) | Fifty-year-old African-American Taylor was shot multiple times in his apartment on St. Catherine Blvd. in Old Louisville, his hands cuffed behind his back. The two arresting LMPD officers alleged that he'd tried to cut them with a box-cutter he apparently had in his back pocket. Officers were acquitted of all charges. |
| 2002-11-23 | Butler, Koron (24) | | Michigan (Detroit) | |
| 2002-11-23 | Rachell M. Taylor (28) | White | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-11-22 | Blunt, Joshua (22) | White | California (Koreatown) | |
| 2002-11-20 | Mitchell, Robert (40) | Black | California (Sun Village) | |
| 2002-11-17 | Fuller, Kenny (37) | Black | California (Florence) | |
| 2002-11-17 | Michael R. Barrett (25) | | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-11-15 | Landon, Seth (35) | White | California (Wilmington) | |
| 2002-11-10 | Queen, Joseph (23) | Black | California (Carson) | |
| 2002-11-04 | Rodney Ali Baldwin (24) | Black | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-10-27 | Torres, Everado (24) | | California (Madera) | A Madera Police officer shot Torres as he sat, handcuffed, in the back of a police car. He had been arrested for resisting as police tried to quiet a loud party. The officer reported that she had intended to reach for her Taser but grabbed her firearm instead. |
| 2002-10-13 | Davila, Alberto (26) | Latino | California (Hollywood) | |
| 2002-10-11 | Nelson, Dawn Rae | | Arizona (Chandler) | Nelson was shot by officer Dan Lovelace. According to Lovelace, Nelson was driving towards him with her car, but prosecutors said they believed that Lovelace's life was not in danger when he shot Nelson. Lovelace was charged with second-degree murder, and was not found not guilty. He was fired from the Chandler Police Department. |
| 2002-10-06 | Rossback, Nathan (40) | Unknown | California (Westchester) | |
| 2002-10-05 | Maurice Lizotte (63) | | Vermont (Rochester) | |
| 2002-10-01 | Boyce, Mark (37) | | Michigan (Detroit) | |
| 2002-09-28 | Christopher Lee (33) | | Ohio (Columbus) | |
| 2002-09-27 | Ki Yang (46) | Asian | Minnesota (St. Paul) | |
| 2002-09-23 | Miranda, David (28) | Latino | California | |
| 2002-09-22 | Brandon Lee Lett (21) | Black | Florida (Miami) | |
| 2002-09-21 | Francisco Ponce (22) | | Iowa (Onawa) | |
| 2002-09-19 | Christopher J. Worden (27) | | Arizona (Phoenix) | |
| 2002-09-08 | Evaline Barros-Capeda | | Massachusetts (Boston) | |
| 2002-09-01 | Jamil Moore (22) | | New York (Cararsie, Brooklyn) | |
| 2002-08-31 | Paul Angel (55) | | New York (Bensonhurst, Brooklyn) | |
| 2002-08-27 | Ricardo Mason (16) | | Ohio (Cleveland) | |
| 2002-08-23 | Klingman, Robert (21) | White | California (Lancaster) | |
| 2002-08-15 | Eric Daniel Foster (25) | Black | California (Fresno) | Foster was unarmed. |
| 2002-8-12 | Arnold, Christopher "Winks" | | Pennsylvania (York) | Arnold died of positional asphyxiation after being beaten by police in his front yard, hogtied, and placed face down in the police wagon. Officers were responding to a reports of Arnold, a schizophrenic, walking around and talking to himself. |
| 2002-08-08 | Jeffrey Hoplins (23) | | Ohio (Cleveland) | |
| 2002-08-08 | Chavez, John (34) | Latino | California (Sierra Madre) | |
| 2002-08-06 | Ronald M. Cunningham (41) | | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-08-05 | Hardeman, Tessa (35) | | Georgia (Atlanta) | Tessa Hardeman, who was an alleged prostitute, allegedly pepper-sprayed and stabbed the officer who was trying to arrest her for solicitation. She was shot and killed. |
| 2002-08-01 | Donald, Martha (60) | | Minnesota (Minneapolis) | Killed in a shootout with officer Melissa Jayne Schmidt, who also died. |
| 2002-07-28 | ?(16) | | Michigan (Detroit) | |
| 2002-07-21 | Salome Pineda Garvajal (41) | Hispanic | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-07-19 | Leonard Michael Mosqueda (38) | Hispanic | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-07-15 | Christopher Bernard Menifee (23) | Black | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-07-11 | Melvin "Mario" Alejandro Romero (20) | Hispanic | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-07-06 | Menifield, Cecil (37) | Black | California (Los Angeles) | |
| 2002-07-02 | LaVeta Jackson | | Massachusetts (Boston) | |
| 2002-07-02 | Bilderrain, Michael (19) | Latino | California (Pacoima) | |
| 2002-06-28 | Joseph P. Finley (20) | | Ohio (Cleveland) | |
| 2002-06-20 | McHugh, Sean (32) | White | California (Tarzana) | |
| 2002-06-17 | Connie Pearsall (26) | | Washington (Oak Harbor) | |
| 2002-06-14 | Feras B. Abdelrazzaq (29) | White | California (San Dimas) | |
| 2002-06-12 | James Brandon Fields (22) | White | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-06-12 | Daniel Damian Jr. (20) | Hispanic | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-06-12 | Carlos Alberto Ramirez (24) | Hispanic | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-06-11 | Mitchell, Jason (33) | Black | California (Chesterfield Square) | |
| 2002-06-11 | King, Sophia (23) | | Texas (Austin) | |
| 2002-06-09 | Waseem Jung (19) | Asian | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-06-06 | Stephon K. Moore (39) | | Ohio (Cleveland) | |
| 2002-06-? | unknown | Unknown | Texas (Dallas) | |
| 2002-05-31 | Pineiro, Antonio (48) | Latino | California (Long Beach) | Pineiro entered a supermarket with firearms and opened fire at random, killing two people and wounding four others. Responding law enforcement officers fatally shot Pineiro. |
| 2002-05-29 | Ball, Laron | | Wisconsin (Milwaukee) | Ball was shot and killed in the Milwaukee safety building at his homicide trial. As the verdicts were read, Ball jumped over a table and the jury box to a window but failed to smash it open. Two sheriff's deputies tackled him, but he got hold of their guns, and one deputy, Mike Witkowski, was shot in the leg before a Milwaukee police detective shot and killed Ball. |
| 2002-05-25 | Volpa, Mark Charles, Jr. (21) | | California (Auberry) | A SWAT team from Fresno Police, Fresno County Sheriff's Office, and Clovis Police surrounded Volpa in his camper. They negotiated for several hours for his surrender. Officers say he was shot and killed when he exited the camper with an assault rifle. He had been sought for killing a Fresno County Sheriff's deputy May 19. |
| 2002-05-24 | Marcus Alexander (26) | | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-05-21 | Nelson Santiago | | Massachusetts (Boston) | |
| 2002-05-19 | Castro, Fermin (34) | Latino | California (Winnetka) | |
| 2002-04-29 | Miller, Brian (42) | White | California (Carson) | |
| 2002-04-28 | Robles, Jesus (26) | Latino | California (Lynwood) | |
| 2002-04-26 | Heywood, Terrance | | U.S. Virgin Islands (St. Croix) | An officer responded after reports of a naked man at a beach. When the officer confronted the man, Heywood, he approached the officer, who fell over before shooting Heywood. Heywood was unarmed. |
| 2002-04-16 | Esau Marin (25) | Hispanic | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-04-16 | Dominguez, Eddie (27) | Latino | California (Los Angeles) | |
| 2002-04-14 | Michael Wayne Goodman (40) | Unknown | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-04-12 | McCall, Kendraey (19) | Black | California (Vermont Vista) | |
| 2002-04-09 | Dominick Galliano (51) | Unknown | New Jersey (Dover Township) | |
| 2002-04-09 | Gail Galliano (49) | Unknown | New Jersey (Dover Township) | |
| 2002-04-09 | Chris Galliano (25) | Unknown | New Jersey (Dover Township) | |
| 2002-04-09 | Gary Williams (48) | Unknown | New Jersey (Dover Township) | |
| 2002-04-09 | Time Williams (46) | Unknown | New Jersey (Dover Township) | |
| 2002-04-04 | Randy Reeves (19) | Latino | California (Ventura) | |
| 2002-04-03 | Trey Antuan Lively (30) | Black | Florida (Miami Gardens) | |
| 2002-03-27 | Ruch, Nathan (20) | | Illinois (Normal) | Shot and killed by Officer James Merica via shotgun. Merica exited his police vehicle with a shotgun as Ruch's pickup came around the house and "veered toward the officer", Merica fired four shots at the truck, which crossed the cul-de-sac and crashed into a garage. Ruch was unarmed |
| 2002-03-23 | Villanueva, Joshua (26) | Latino | California (Highland Park) | |
| 2002-03-22 | Terry J. Compagno (47) | Unknown | Illinois (Wood River) | |
| 2002-03-18 | Jimmy Joe Urioste (44) | Unknown | Texas (Spade) | |
| 2002-03-18 | Terry L. Lappin (58) | Unknown | Florida (Largo) | |
| 2002-03-18 | Wolk, Henry (77) | | Illinois (Chicago) | Killed in a shootout with officer Donald J. Marquez, who also died. |
| 2002-03-17 | Milton Glenn Dunkley Jr. (26) | Unknown | Virginia (Richmond) | |
| 2002-03-16 | Nathaniel B. Adkins (22) | Black | Florida (Brooksville) | |
| 2002-03-16 | Richard Tims (35) | Black | California (San Francisco) | |
| 2002-03-08 | Victor "Twin" Meza Jr. (19) | Hispanic | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-02-28 | Gary S. Martin (39) | White | California (San Diego) | |
| 2002-02-26 | Paul Simmons (47) | Unknown | Iowa (Urbandale) | |
| 2002-02-26 | Henry C. Simmons (45) | Unknown | Iowa (Urbandale) | |
| 2002-02-26 | Andre J. Gilreath (31) | Unknown | Washington DC | |
| 2002-02-25 | Michael Buchanan (61) | Unknown | Maine (Sommerville) | |
| 2002-02-24 | Douglas Kim (47) | Asian | California (Rancho Park) | |
| 2002-02-24 | Steve Allred (42) | White | Florida (Groveland) | |
| 2002-02-23 | Tallas Tomeny (31) | White | North Carolina (Robbins) | |
| 2002-02-22 | Byron Hammick (26) | Black | Oregon (Portland) | Police were responding to a 911 call from a security guard that a man was assaulting a 3-year-old boy. The police were informed by the guard that the man could be armed with a handgun. When police arrived, they ordered Hammick to stop. The officers considered using their mace and batons to subdue Hammick, but decided that the motel room was small and that Hammick was too large. Police fired a shot through a broken window, wounding Hammick. Four shots in total were then fired, killing Hammick. He was found to be unarmed, but had PCP and Methamphetamine in his system. Before the incident, Hammick called 911 between 1:30 am and 2:00 am to report a noise complaint about a local dance club across the street from the motel. Later, Hammick called 911 at 3:05 am, threatening to kill the 3-year-old boy. |
| 2002-02-19 | David E. Kinney (35) | Unknown | Georgia (Ringgold) | |
| 2002-02-18 | Shawn J. Maxwell (31) | Black | Washington (Seattle) | |
| 2002-02-18 | Isayo, Ramin (27) | Latino | California (Palmdale) | |
| 2002-02-17 | Phillip J. Lamberson (44) | Unknown | Maryland (Joppa) | |
| 2002-02-15 | Gonzalo F. Martinez (26) | Latino | California (Downey) | Two officers shot and killed unarmed Martinez when he reached toward his waistband after a high-speed chase. |
| 2002-02-12 | Leon C. Arther (31) | Unknown | New Mexico (Albuquerque) | Two APD officers shot Arthur to death when he allegedly make a "threatening approach," brandishing a hairbrush. |
| 2002-02-12 | Willie Murray (37) | Unknown | Massachusetts (Boston) | Murray was shot and killed by police after a 4 a.m. traffic stop, after he was observed driving the wrong way on a one-way street with his lights off. Reportedly Murray refused to pull over. |
| 2002-02-09 | Jack Alton Stuart (42) | White | Texas (Houston) | |
| 2002-02-07 | Robert Winters (30) | White | Illinois (Chicago) | An off-duty police officer shot Winters after Winters robbed him at gunpoint and fled. |
| 2002-02-04 | Cummings, Kamekona (33) | | Hawaii (Puna) | |
| 2002-01-31 | Guanda Denise Turner (41) | Black | California (Long Beach) | Turner died a week later after officers put her in a chokehold. |
| 2002-01-29 | Montanez, David (36) | Latino | California (Pico Rivera) | |
| 2002-01-29 | Contreras, Robert (21) | Latino | California (Mission Hills) | |
| 2002-01-26 | Craig Bickerstaff (27) | Unknown | Ohio (Cleveland) | |
| 2002-01-24 | Charles, Kerby | | U.S. Virgin Islands (St. Croix) | An officer found Charles trespassing on his property after hearing his dog bark. After pursuing Charles, he and the officer fought over a gun, and it discharged, killing Charles. The officer faced administrative charges, as the attorney general stated the officer should have called for backup and should not have approached Charles close enough to let him lunge for his weapon. |
| 2002-01-23 | John Wegrich (53) | Unknown | Florida (Lake Worth) | |
| 2002-01-23 | David Kasmar (46) | Unknown | Illinois (Naperville) | |
| 2002-01-23 | Shaminder Singh Mundi (20) | White | California (Encino) | |
| 2002-01-21 | Eddie L. Macklin (20) | Black | Florida (Miami) | |
| 2002-01-20 | Luis A. Torres (45) | Hispanic | Texas (Baytown) | |
| 2002-01-19 | Byrd, Marcella (57) | Black | California (Long Beach) | |
| 2002-01-18 | Russell L. Stewart (31) | Unknown | Utah (Bountiful) | Stewart was unarmed when police shot him during a foot chase. His family files a suit against the police, claiming excessive force, wrongful death, and a coverup. |
| 2002-01-18 | Karim Contreras Diaz (25) | Unknown | Utah (Orem) | |
| 2002-01-15 | Jermaine Sanders (25) | Black | Ohio (Cleveland) | |
| 2002-01-06 | Pacheco, Cathalene (42) | | Hawaii (Waikoloa, South Kohala) | |
| 2002-01-01 | Garcia, Leonardo (19) | Latino | California (Lynwood) | |
| 2002-01-01 | Fred Douglas Wallace (73) | | Texas (Tyler) | |
| 2002-?-? | Rodriguez, Samuel | | Wisconsin (Milwaukee) | |