Badges of Honor - 1929 through 1939

Officer Howard Garlinger

Kern
October 30, 1929

Officer Howard Garlinger, 31, was on the evening shift patrolling in East Bakersfield when a motorist made a turn in front of the patrolman as he was approaching an intersection. Garlinger struck the vehicle broadside and was flung from his motorcycle, sustaining fatal head injuries. The patrolman had previously served four years with the Kern County Traffic Squad prior to the Squad being absorbed into the CHP in 1929.

Edgar James Combs

Kern
September 9, 1930

Officer Edgar J. Combs was near the end of his shift patrolling at midnight along the Famosa Highway north of Bakersfield, when the front tire of his motorcycle blew out as he was crossing railroad tracks. The motorcycle turned over and the 33-year-old patrolman was hurled 70 feet and killed instantly.

Officer Elber D. Warren

Alameda
January 24, 1931

Officer Elber D. Warren was on routine patrol when his motorcycle collided with an automobile. Officer Warren was thrown to the pavement and died from his injuries.

Sergeant Burt Reeves

Marin
September 22, 1931

Sergeant Burt Reeves was patrolling in heavy Sunday traffic when his motorcycle was forced off a Marin County highway and he was thrown to the ground. Reeves was rushed to the hospital but succumbed to his injuries four days later. He had been a patrolman for six years and served as acting commander of the Marin Squad during the absence of the captain. Sergeant Reeves was also a World War I veteran.

Officer J.W. Shuman

Kern
March 1, 1932

Officer J.W. Shuman accidentally shot and fatally wounded himself as he was repairing his service revolver in a room used as an armory in the CHP office. Shuman evidently believed he had taken out all of the cartridges from his revolver when he began inspecting the action of the pistol. Investigators found the partially dismantled revolver, pistol cleaning implements, a screwdriver and five cartridges lying on a low counter. The 36-year-old patrolman died two hours later without regaining consciousness. Officer Shuman was a member of the CHP for six years.

Officer Edwin B. Crook

Los Angeles
July 8, 1932

Officer Edwin B. Crook was pursuing a speeding motorist late at night through Venice when his motorcycle was struck by an oncoming automobile. Crook was thrown from his motorcycle and killed instantly. He had been a CHP patrolman for only eight days.

Officer A. Edward Hinck

San Diego
August 14, 1932

Officer A. Edward Hinck was patrolling in National City early on a Saturday morning when a motorist made a left-hand turn in front of Hincks motorcycle. Officer Hinck was unable to stop and crashed into the automobile. The impact of the collision killed the 30-year-old patrol officer instantly.

Officer Floyd A. Russell

Los Angeles
January 15, 1933

Officer Floyd A. Russell, 35, was chasing a speeder on Pomona Valley Boulevard when he was struck by an automobile that turned in his path without signaling. Russell was thrown from his motorcycle and died a few hours later. Reckless-driving charges were filed against the motorist.

Officer Thomas C. Bisset

Butte
January 26, 1933

Officer Thomas C. Bisset was patrolling on his regular beat in Chico when he suffered a paralyzing stroke. Bissets condition improved and he appeared close to recovery when a second stroke took his life. Bisset was 42 years old and a four-year veteran of the CHP. Prior to joining the Patrol, he had been a peace officer in Gridley.

Officer Stephen S. Kent

Siskiyou
March 10, 1933

Officer Stephen S. Kent, 41, was assisting in the pursuit of a suspect sought in three states for bank robbery and kidnapping. Kent stopped the suspect vehicle in Yreka but as he approached, the suspect opened fire, killing the patrolman instantly. The killer was captured, stood trial and was convicted of murder. He was sentenced to death and executed at Folsom Prison in 1936.

Officer Ted Davis

Los Angeles
March 11, 1933

Officer Ted Davis, 37, was carrying out the emergency assignment of escorting doctors and nurses through rubble-strewn streets following the 1933 Long Beach earthquake. Davis' motorcycle struck a hole in the pavement that had been damaged by the quake, throwing him to the ground and killing him instantly.

Officer John J. Daroux

Sacramento
March 12, 1933

Officer John A. Daroux was struck by a vehicle that was closely following the patrolman along Auburn Boulevard in Sacramento. Apparently the brakes on Daroux's motorcycle locked abruptly and the vehicle behind him was unable to slow and avoid striking the motorcycle. The 36-year-old patrolman was rushed to the hospital but died two days later without regaining consciousness. Daroux had served as a sergeant in the army air service in France during World War I.

Officer Jack E. Marks

San Bernardino
April 11, 1933

Officer Jack E. Marks was patrolling on his motorcycle in tandem with Officer Frank Freeman along Foothill Boulevard in Cucamonga. Marks' wind visor apparently became interlocked with the handlebars on Freeman's motorcycle and the accidental contact caused both officers to the thrown to the ground. Freeman suffered collar and shoulder injuries, but Marks died before he reached the hospital. Officer Marks, 34, had been a police officer with the city of Colton in 1921 and an officer with the county motor patrol squad in 1924. He was made a Highway Patrol officer in 1929 when the county squad merged with the CHP.

Officer Oscar D. McMurry

San Bernardino
March 5, 1934

Officer Oscar D. McMurry was responding to the scene of an accident at 2:30 in the morning when the headlight of his motorcycle suddenly went out. In the darkness, McMurry lost control and struck a sign post while traveling at more than 65 m.p.h. McMurry sustained serious injuries to his chest and stomach, requiring months of treatment including two major operations. He died from complications that followed the second operation. Officer McMurry, 29, joined the Patrol on February 9, 1931 when the CHP was established in Inyo County.

Officer Francis J. Perry

Sacramento
July 4, 1934

Officer Francis J. Perry was flung into a tree after both tires of his motorcycle blew while he was patrolling along Fair Oaks Boulevard near the H Street Bridge in Sacramento. The 28-year-old patrol officer had been a member of the CHP for three years.

Officer Hugh C. Cline

Los Angeles
August 26, 1934

Officer Hugh C. Cline was patrolling at night along the Roosevelt Highway just north of Santa Monica Boulevard when he collided with an automobile. Cline, 43, was thrown from his motorcycle, sustained critical injuries and died the following day.

Officer A. Donald Hoover

Santa Cruz
August 31, 1934

Officer A. Donald Hoover was traveling along the Santa Cruz - Watsonville Highway, on a stretch known to locals as "Slaughterhouse Curve", when his motorcycle collided with an automobile that pulled out from a side road and turned in front of the patrolman. Hoover, 31, sustained critical injuries and died without regaining consciousness. Officer Hoover was a distant relative of Herbert Hoover, the former President of the United States.

Officer William R. McDaniel

Butte
October 6, 1934

Officer William R. McDaniel, 36, was shot and killed by an ex-convict while he was investigating the scene of a wrecked vehicle which had earlier been driven and abandoned by the killer. McDaniel had intended to impound the car and was accompanied by a garage mechanic, Kenneth Davis, 29, when both were accosted by the ex-convict. Davis was shot and killed instantly. McDaniel returned fire, wounding the assailant, but was himself fatally shot. The killer of the pair fled, but was shot and killed by a sheriff's posse.

Officer Edward L. Bond

Sacramento
April 14, 1935

Officer Edward L. Bond was patrolling along a levee road in Sacramento County when his motorcycle skidded as he was rounding a curve. Bond lost control and was hurled over the embankment. The 38-year-old patrolman had served with the Patrol four years. Officer Bond's great-niece, Joan, is married to Sergeant Dan Fugate (10294).

Officer Ivan Casselman

Woodland
August 24, 1935

Officer Ivan Casselman was killed when his patrol motorcycle crashed into the back of a truck near Davis in Yolo County. Witnesses said Casselman was thrown fifteen feet off the roadway after striking the rear of a truck he was attempting to pass. The 33-year-old patrolman died hours later from his injuries. Casselman was a seven-year member of the Yolo County Squad.

Officer Charles H. Nissen

Contra Costa
December 17, 1935

Officer Charles H. Nissen was pursuing a traffic violator when a vehicle ahead of him slowed for a turn. Nissen applied his brakes to reduce his speed, but his motorcycle struck the rear of the vehicle and skidded. The patrolman was thrown to the pavement and died at the scene.

Officer Earl M. Ames

Stanislaus
October 10, 1936

Officer Earl M. Ames was returning to the CHP Stanislaus office after a special duty assignment in Oakland. Ames was traveling late in the evening through very heavy fog when his motorcycle collided with a city bus. The bus was reportedly almost invisible in the fog because of its newly installed vapor lights. Officer Ames was thrown from his motorcycle and killed.

Sergeant Richard H. Trembath

Bay Bridge
December 4, 1937

Sergeant Richard H. Trembath was returning to his home in Berkeley after two weeks of training at the Academy in Sacramento, when his motorcycle collided head-on with an automobile in the middle lane of a three-lane highway near the Carquinez Bridge. Trembath, 34, was killed on what was to have been his last day as a motorcycle officer. He had just been promoted to sergeant and was to have been transferred to patrol car duty the next day.

Sergeant E.R. "Ed" Carr

Fresno
January 27, 1938

Sergeant E.R. "Ed" Carr, 57, was investigating a stalled vehicle on the Golden Gate Highway Pass near Fresno when he was struck and killed by a passing automobile. The 17-year-old driver of the automobile claimed he did not see Carr as he walked toward the stalled vehicle, although investigating officers found a lighted flashlight in the patrolman's hand. Carr was a 12-year CHP veteran and had just been promoted to the rank of sergeant one day before he was killed.

Officer Leonard Nelson

Los Angeles
May 18, 1938

Officer Leonard Nelson and his partner, Officer L.L. Jordan, were working the graveyard shift in Artesia when they stopped a suspected drunk driver at 2:30 a.m. Nelson was administering the sobriety test to the suspect when a vehicle driven by a second drunk driver crashed into the pair. Both the 30-year-old patrol officer and the driver he had been testing were killed.

Captain E.L. Shryver

Sonoma
July 10, 1938

Captain E.L. Shryver was directing traffic on U.S. Highway 101 in Sonoma County when he was struck by a vehicle and thrown under the trailer it was pulling. Shryver, 46, battled his injuries for two months before he succumbed. A veteran motorcycle officer with 13 years experience, he had recently qualified as district inspector and was first on the promotional list. Shryver was also an expert pistol shot and represented the CHP at several national pistol matches.

Officer Fred J. Kowolowski

San Benito
December 26, 1938

Officer Fred J. Kowolowski was rounding a sharp bend on a rural road in Santa Clara County when his motorcycle collided with an automobile. The 17-year-old driver of the other vehicle said he had turned from a side road and, seeing the motorcycle coming, stopped. The 29-year-old patrol officer died only hours later. Kowolowski was a former deputy sheriff in Modoc County before he joined the Patrol in 1937.

Officer Joseph B. Mathews

Napa
August 10, 1939

Officer Joseph B. Mathews was called out to break up a fight between two men at a resort outside the city of Napa. After arresting the two suspects and booking them in the country jail, Mathews returned to the CHP office where he suffered a cerebral hemorrhage. The 32-year-old patrol officer was a native of Napa and had been a member of the CHP for nine years.

Officer Ernest R. Nelson

Monterey
August 29, 1939

Officer Ernest R. Nelson was patrolling on his motorcycle south of Salinas when a pickup truck made a left turn and crossed the road directly in front of the patrolman. Nelson attempted to swerve and avoid the crash, but skidded directly into the side of the truck and was killed. The driver was arrested for negligent homicide. Nelson, 43, joined the Patrol in 1935 and was previously assigned to the Academy before he transferred to Salinas.