Southern Nevada law officers who died in line of duty since 2000

Metropolitan police officer Truong Thai was added Thursday to a growing list of Southern Nevada lawmen to die in the line of duty.

Some, like Thai, were fatally shot. Some died in traffic accidents. Two corrections officers died of heart attacks during struggles with inmates. Another died in a fall during an aerial rescue. And several were victims of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Here’s a look at the lawmen who have died in the line of duty since 2000.

— Metropolitan Police Department Officer Truong Thai, 49, was shot to death while responding to a domestic disturbance call on East Flamingo Road in Las Vegas on Thursday.

— Metro Detective Justin Terry, 45, died when a steel height-restriction beam fell onto his car on U.S. Highway 95, near the 215 Beltway, in Las Vegas on June 10.

— U.S. Department of Justice Special Deputy Marshal Jose Gomez, 61, died of COVID-19 on Feb. 6, while serving the Lloyd D. George U.S. Courthouse in Las Vegas

— Federal Air Marshal Shawn Hennessee, 51, died of COVID-19 on Aug. 26, 2021, while assigned to the Las Vegas field office.

—Forensic Specialist Hans Molina-Terrazas, 28, died of COVID-19 on Aug. 16, 2021, while working for the Stein Forensic Facility in Las Vegas.

— Nevada Highway Patrol Officer Micah May, 46, died on July 29, 2021, from injuries sustained when he was hit by a stolen car while deploying spike strips on Interstate 15 near West Sahara Avenue two days before.

— Metro Officer Jason Swanger, 41, died from COVID-19 on June 24, 2021.

— Pahrump Justice Court Bailiff Gerald Smith died of COVID-19 on Jan. 18, 2021, at the age of 60.

— Metro Lt. Erik Lloyd, 53, died of COVID-19 on July 29, 2020.

— Corrections Officer Kyle Eng, 51, died of a heart attack on July 19, 2018 after a reported struggle with an inmate in the Las Vegas Detention Center.

— Metro Officer Charles Hartfield, 34, was shot and killed while trying to rescue people off-duty during the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting.

— North Las Vegas Police Detective Chad William Parque, 32, died on Jan. 7, 2017, from injuries sustained in a head-on car crash the day before.

— Metro Officers Igor Soldo, 31, and Alyn Beck, 41, died on June 8, 2014. They were ambushed and shot in a Cici’s Pizza on North Nellis Boulevard.

— Metro Officer David VanBuskirk, 36, died on July 23, 2013, after falling during an aerial rescue on Mount Charleston.

— Corrections Officer Tracy Hardin, 55, died of a heart attack after a reported struggle with an inmate at High Desert State Prison on Jan. 20, 2012.

— Special Deputy Marshal Stanley Cooper, 72, was shot and killed on Jan. 4, 2010, in the lobby of Lloyd D. George Federal Courthouse when a man opened fire at the marshals with a shotgun.

— Corrections Officer Daniel Leach, 49, was killed during a crash in a prisoner transport van on U.S. Highway 95, 1 mile north of Searchlight on Nov. 21, 2009. The van was traveling from the Clark County Detention Center to the Tucker Holding Facility when it collided with a semi-truck.

— Metro Officer Trevor Nettleton, 30, was shot and killed after suspects attempted to rob him at gunpoint in his garage on Nov. 19, 2009. He wounded one of the suspects when he shot back before he died.

— Metro Officer Milburn Beitel III, 30, died from injuries suffered in a crash on Oct. 8, 2009, after he and his partner were driving through an intersection and another driver forced the patrol car out of control and into a crash.

— Metro Officer James Manor was killed in a vehicle crash on May 7, 2009, when a car turned in front of the 28-year-old’s patrol vehicle, causing a head-on collision. The officer was responding to a domestic disturbance call without his siren on when the crash occurred.

— Metro Sgt. Henry Prendes, 37, was fatally shot while he and several officers were responding to a man beating a woman with a stick in a front yard on Feb. 1, 2006. The suspect was already in the home when officers arrived, and Prendes was shot by the suspect with an assault rifle.

Contact Mark Credico at mcredico@reviewjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @MarkCredicoII. Contact Jimmy Romo at jromo@reviewjournal.com or call 702-383-0350. Follow @Jimi_Writes on Twitter