Officer J. D. Tippit
Dallas Police Department
Texas
End of Watch: Friday, November 22, 1963

Biographical Info
Age: 39
Tour of Duty: 11 years
Badge Number: 848

Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Friday, November 22, 1963
Weapon Used: Handgun; .38 caliber
Suspect Info: Shot and killed

Officer J. D. Tippit was shot and killed attempting to apprehend the assassin of President John F. Kennedy.

At approximately 1314 hours, 45 minutes after President Kennedy was shot, Officer Tippit stopped the suspect, Lee Harvey Oswald, who was on foot and who fit the general description of the assassin that was being broadcast. The suspect walked over to the passenger side of Officer Tippit's patrol car. Officer Tippit and Oswald spoke briefly through an open vent window, then Officer Tippit got out of his car. As Officer Tippit walked toward the front of his patrol car, he was shot three times at point blank range with a .38 caliber revolver. He was then shot in the head by Oswald while laying on the pavement, which proved to be the fatal shot.

A citizen that witnessed the shooting used the police radio in Officer Tippit's patrol car to alert other officers of the shooting.

Oswald was apprehended by responding officers and was hiding in a movie theater. He was seen by an alert citizen who witnessed the incident. Oswald was later shot and killed by a citizen while in police custody.

In January 1964, Officer Tippit was posthumously awarded the Medal of Valor from the National Police Hall of Fame and also received the Police Medal of Honor, the Police Cross, and the Citizens Traffic Commission Award of Heroism.

Officer Tippit had been employed with the Dallas Police Department for 11 years. He is survived by his wife, daughter, and two sons.