Officer Robert Devoid
1933 - 1970

36 years old
Tour of Duty: 2 1/2 years
Died on April 23, 1970

Cause of Death: Automobile Accident

Date of Incident: Thursday, April 23, 1970

Weapon Used : N/A

Suspect Info: N/A

Patrolman Devoid was a member of the Berlin Police Department for two-and one-half years. He was born September 13, 1933, in Berlin, New Hampshire and was a life long resident. He was a veteran of the Korean War, a member of the American Legion and the Fraternal Order of the Eagles Club. He was a member of the New Hampshire Police Association and the Coos County Law Enforcement Association. He was a graduate of Berlin High School, Class of 1951.

On the evening of April 23, 1970, Patrolman Devoid, along with Patrolman Dorman Wheelock, were traveling on Route 2 in Randolph. The two Berlin officers were on their way to Lancaster to pick up blood needed for a transfusion for Berlin Reporter Publisher Stevenson Munro who had been critically injured the week before. While Patrolman Wheelock was driving, the officers’ cruiser collided head-on with a vehicle carrying four teenagers. Both officers died in the collision, as did three of the teenagers in the other vehicle. Patrolman Devoid was 36 years old.

He was survived by his wife, two sons and one daughter.