Police Officer Thomas Russell Portz, Jr.

Thomas Russell Portz, Jr.

Police Officer Tommy Portz was killed in an automobile crash when his patrol car struck the back of a firetruck that stopped on Route 40 near Calhoun Street.

The firetruck had responded to reports of an injured person lying in the highway median strip and had stopped in the left lane to ask a film crew if they had seen the subject.

Officer Portz's patrol car collided with the back of the stopped truck at a high rate of speed, causing him to suffer fatal injuries.

Officer Portz had served with the Baltimore Police Department for just under 10 years. He is survived by his wife and three children.