Dane County deputy dies at 61 due to COVID-19

Dane County deputy dies at 61 due to coronavirus

Rick Treadwell had been with the department since 1995 and worked as a recruiter and instructor. All evidence indicates he contracted the virus while on duty.

MADISON - A deputy with the Dane County Sheriff’s Office who is believed to have contracted the coronavirus while on duty has died.

Sheriff David Mahoney said in a statement obtained by WMTV that Richard “Rick” Treadwell is believed to be Wisconsin’s first law enforcement officer to die from the virus after contracting it while on duty.

Treadwell had been with the department since 1995 and worked as a recruiter and instructor. The statement did not provide specifics but said “all evidence” indicates Treadwell contracted the virus while on duty.

His body was escorted from a hospital Saturday, Aug. 22 to a funeral home by a law enforcement procession.

He leaves behind a wife and three adult children. Funeral arrangements are pending.

Attorney General Josh Kaul issued the following the statement following the death of Deputy Treadwell:

“Today we mourn the death of Dane County Sheriff’s Deputy Rick Treadwell. All of Wisconsin law enforcement stands beside Rick’s family, friends, and coworkers at the Dane County Sheriff’s Office. As a training deputy, Rick was able to impact each new generation of sheriff’s deputy in Dane County. This important and honorable public service made communities in Wisconsin safer, and the legacy of his service will continue through the work of the many deputies he trained."