Officer David L. Worcester was appointed to the Oakland Police Department in February 1949. He was assigned to the Traffic Bureau as a motorcycle patrolman in June 1952.

Just prior to getting off duty on July 8, 1953, Worcester and three other motorcycle officers were assigned to assist at a fire scene. Worcester and Officer LeRoy Perry left City Hall and drove their motorcycles east. As they made the loop on the 12th Street Dam and onto E 14th Street, Worcester crossed over the centerline. He struck the left front of a westbound vehicle. His motorcycle spun around and Perry’s motorcycle struck him. Worcester was thrown 25 feet and struck his head on the pavement. He died shortly after arrival at Merritt Hospital of a fractured skull. Perry suffered from minor wounds and shock.

Worcester, 29, was survived by his wife and two children.