Association News

On the evening of May 5, Sgt. Lionel Martinez, a 21-year veteran of IACLEA member institution Alamo Colleges Police Department in San Antonio (Texas), suffered a heart attack while responding to an emergency call. His vehicle then hit a parked vehicle. He died a short time later at the hospital, according to news reports.

The following is a statement from the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA) President John Vinson, PhD.

“It is with great sadness that IACLEA has learned about the line-of-duty death of Sgt. Lionel Martinez at member institution Alamo Colleges Police Department. For 21 years Sgt. Martinez served his community and bore the enormous responsibility of a first responder. On Tuesday, he made the ultimate sacrifice in service to his community while responding to an emergency call about a shooting. For his service, IACLEA extends our deepest gratitude.

“Campus police officers have a unique relationship with their community and provide a range of services—from safety training, to traffic control, to active shooter response—both on- and off-campus. Regardless of the danger, for campus police officers the safety of their community members is paramount. Sgt. Martinez exemplified this commitment on his final call.

“IACLEA offers its gratitude to Sgt. Martinez for his dedicated service. We hold in our thoughts and prayers his family, friends, the Alamo Colleges Police Department personnel, and the campus community. IACLEA will honor his memory--always.”

Sgt. Martinez is the 48th campus police officer line-of-duty death recorded between 1923 and today. Please see https://www.iaclea.org/officer-memorial for information and a video honoring their service.