On July 19, 1980, Sergeant Arthur Cashin of the Chelsea Police Department was shot and killed during a routine traffic stop in Bellingham Square, Chelsea. Cashin, 37, and a nine-year department veteran, and his partner Officer William Copello had stopped a vehicle for driving the wrong way on a one-way street. As Cashin approached the driver’s side, the driver became aggressive, struck Cashin and knocked him face-first onto the sidewalk, then un-holstered Cashin’s service weapon and shot him twice in the back while he lay on the ground.

Officer Copello, positioned at the passenger side, drew his service weapon and shot the driver, killing him. Sergeant Cashin was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and pronounced dead shortly after midnight on July 20, 1980. He left a wife, Lorraine, and two daughters, Stacey, 11, and Renee, 6. Nearly 1,000 police officers from 95 communities attended his funeral procession, which included a 21-gun salute and Taps at Woodlawn cemetery in Everett.

If anyone has information about the events that night or remembers Sergeant Cashin, please share what you know.