Bradley Ryan Jones was 26 and a four-year veteran of the Glendale Police Department when he was killed on Saturday, October 29, 2011. He had been assisting a probation officer at an apartment complex near North 75th and West Glendale Avenues for a meeting with a parolee. Upon making contact in the parking lot, the man produced a handgun and shot Officer Jones.

After the shooting the assailant stole Jones’s patrol car and fled. Officer Jones radioed for help; a pursuit ended when the suspect crashed on West Glendale Avenue. The suspect exchanged gunfire with pursuing officers, was critically wounded and hospitalized for several weeks. Officer Jones was taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix and died of his injuries at about 1:00 a.m., surrounded by family, friends, and colleagues. He is survived by his wife and two young children.

The suspect, identified as 20-year-old Ryan Heisler, was later charged with capital murder; a subsequent court ruling in 2011 resulted in an absolute discharge, the ruling acknowledging a murder had occurred but finding punishment inappropriate and closing the case.