On the afternoon of July 14, 1965 Officer Brice Woody was investigating reports of juveniles throwing rocks at moving trains in Oakland, when he approached a group of juveniles drinking beer in a nearby garage.
One of the juveniles went into the house and came out with a 12-gauge shotgun. The suspect began yelling profanities at Woody then pulled the trigger, striking him in the stomach. Woody survived and was able to give a statement saying he had been shot by a 16 year old male. He had his badge in hand at the time of the shooting and was attempting to talk the boy into putting the gun down. The shooter, 16-year-old Dennis Cunningham was taken into custody shortly after.
Officer Woody was transported to Merritt Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries on July 23, 1965.
Deputy Vernon L. Cox, Tulare Co. Sheriff’s Dept., died in the line of duty on April 15, 1965. Cox, along with Deputy Donald L. Green and Sgt. Ralph M. Cross, were investigating burglaries in the Tulare area and were enroute to recover stolen items and to try to arrest a burglary suspect when their unit was struck in an intersection by another car. Green and Cross recovered from their injuries.
Cox, 29, was a native of Norman, Oklahoma, attended Porterville Union High School, and was an Air Force veteran of the Korean War.
His wife, Betty Lou; two sons, Wendell and Wessie; and a daughter, Belinda, survived him.
Officer Merrel L. Kissinger was transporting a prisoner he arrested for suspicion of drunk driving near Carlsbad on U.S. Highway 101. Kissinger was enroute to the San Diego County Jail when his prisoner opened fire through the wire mesh divider that confined him, and killed the 39-year-old officer while he drove the patrol car. Kissinger died from three shots fired from a small .25 caliber handgun the prisoner managed to conceal when searched by another officer. The killer was captured when he failed to break out of the patrol car after it skidded to a stop. Officer Kissinger, a 14-year veteran of the CHP, was on the promotional list for sergeant at the time of his death.
Sgt. Robert L. Everitt was killed on Dec. 7, when he was struck by an out-of-control pickup truck while he was directing traffic at the scene of a minor accident.
No charges were filed against the driver.
Everitt had been with the agency for 10 years.
His wife and three children survived him.
Officer Leonard L. Layton was enroute to a court appearance in Ukiah when he was killed on U.S. Highway 101. Accident investigators reported the patrol car went over an embankment while rounding a curve on the rain-slicked pavement. Layton, 26, had graduated from the Academy a year earlier. His father, retired Officer Leonard M. Layton, was on active duty at the time of his son’s death.
