Temple University Police Department, Pennsylvania • Line of Duty Death: February 18, 2023
On February 18, 2023, Police Sergeant Christopher David Fitzgerald of the Temple University Police Department sustained fatal gunshot wounds while attempting to arrest a robbery suspect.
Born and raised in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Pine Valley neighborhood, Fitzgerald is the eldest child of Pauline and Dr. Joel Fitzgerald, having been raised alongside his younger sister Dalaney, and brother, Joel, Jr. “L.J”. During his youth, he was a neighborhood fixture who would frequently engage in bicycle riding, football, and basketball with his father (and other City of Philadelphia Police Officers). Like most Philadelphians, he was “four for four,” a term reserved for the most dedicated fans of each of the city’s four major sports franchises: the Philadelphia Eagles, 76ers, Phillies and Flyers. As a high performing athlete, Fitzgerald always yearned for new challenges, so he began running as a hobby with his mother, who taught him, no matter how tired he was, once he approached the finish line, to gather his strength and employ the fortitude to push through and end each race at full speed. It was a strong and subtle message that he would carry with him throughout his life, applying it to every goal that he set out to accomplish. He would become a great athlete through organized track teams, running in the historic Penn Relays in Philadelphia and later starring in state competition for the Stafford High School track team.
Fitzgerald was a good son who loved his family, and was an individual whose younger cousins loved and emulated, and continue to emulate him today. While in his final year in high school, he met his future wife, Marissa in Houston, Texas, after introducing himself to her with a message on Twitter; the pair shared an instant connection, the beginning of a love story that would take them both to Pennsylvania in 2014.
Fitzgerald’s love for the law enforcement profession was inspired by his parents, who both proudly served as Philadelphia Police Officers. As a result, he began his career with the Sugar Land Police Department in 2011, where he served as a Texas Certified Jailer. In March of 2014 after relocating back to Pennsylvania, he became a Correctional Officer at Lehigh County Prison in Allentown, PA. Following in his parents’ footsteps, he was hired into traditional law enforcement service by the Philadelphia Housing Authority until his graduation from the Philadelphia Police Academy in September of 2017. In 2019, he became a Deputy Sheriff with the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office before his lateral hire as a Temple University Police Officer in 2021.
Fitzgerald will be remembered by many for his passion and determination to make his own name in life while improving conditions for residents in the surrounding community and Temple University stakeholders. His profound adoration for his city and Temple University made him the perfect person to work in that atmosphere because he believed the positive things that he achieved through arrests, mentoring local youth, or simply building relationships with students and faculty-built trust and legitimacy, and he could see those efforts were becoming productive. He fought crime with vigilance, valor and courage, but attempted to reverse generations of mistrust by organizing and participating in community outreach activities that could sustain positive outcomes from the university and surrounding communities.
Fitzgerald had simple goals, to make sure he did his job well and made his parents proud, but also to take dangerous criminals who preyed on the community off of the city streets; he accomplished each goal with relative ease. Prior to his premature passing, Fitzgerald was aware of his nomination for Temple University Police Department Officer of the Year, sadly, an award he would receive posthumously.
Marissa and her children currently reside in a beautiful and safe neighborhood outside of the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She continues to fight for the justice her husband deserves, while taking care of their children, and keeping his memory as an amazing, selfless, one-of-a-kind father, who just happened to be a hero on the side, in their hearts and minds forever. Undoubtedly, they will always be reminded of the guardian their father was despite facing all odds. As a means of making ongoing contributions to underserved Philadelphia families, Marissa volunteers time as a mentor and donor to the 501-C3 Crossroads Community Center where she oversees the Sergeant Christopher Fitzgerald House that provides ministerial services to meet the complex needs of 18–24-year-old young men who live in one of the poorest zip codes in the U.S. Prior to Sgt. Fitzgerald’s passing, he and his wife were in the process of purchasing their first home. The donation of a mortgage-free home from the Foundation after the loss of their loved one is incalculable, helping Marissa and her children into a strong and stable community. Finally, Marissa would like others to know that Christopher Fitzgerald is their “forever hero,” a father who volunteered in the most violent sections of Philadelphia during his off-work hours by running with an anti-violence club, yet still made time to make them laugh, and who showered them with unconditional love. He was the best father, husband, brother, and son. His memory and legacy live on through his wife and children.
Police Sergeant Christopher David Fitzgerald is survived by his wife, Marissa, five children: Armani, Autumn, Aviyn, Giselle, and Julian, his parents, Pauline Fitzgerald and Dr. Joel Fitzgerald, his sister, Dalaney, his brother Joel, Jr., his grandmothers, Evelyn and Dorothy, his uncle, Bishop Juan Marrero, his aunt, Elena, great aunts, great uncles, and a host of loving cousins.
