Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Sergeant Vernon Corbell who was assigned to the AERO Bureau and Polygraph Technician Raymond Willis was an observer when they were killed in a plane crash. Sergeant Corbell was piloting a small airplane in search of a downed plane near Malibu. Sergeant Corbell experienced engine trouble and attempted to land. The airplane scraped a hog back ridge at the edge of Puerco Canyon and burst into flames, starting a small brush fire. The plane crashed 500 feet short of the emergency landing strip. Local ranchers rushed to the site but were kept back by the intense heat. The bodies of Corbell and Willis were later recovered by firefighters.
Archives: Fallen Officers
Leo Wise
Harry V. Kay, Jr.
Sgt. Harry V. Kay Jr. was killed on March 11, when he was involved in an accident while pursuing another vehicle. Kay’s patrol car flipped several times, killing him instantly. The vehicle, which he was chasing, was never identified.
Kay had been with the San Diego Police Department for 10 years.
His wife and two sons survived him.
Fredrick W. Walsh, Jr.
Officer Frederick Walsh, Jr., was in pursuit of a vehicle southbound on the Terminal Island Freeway on January 20, 1957, when he struck a light pole. Walsh was taken to St. Mary’s Hospital where he died that evening.
Carl H. Jessing
Officer Carl H. Jessing was pursuing a speeding motorist along the Imperial Highway when he collided with a car that crossed in front of his motorcycle at Firestone Blvd. Jessing was thrown from his motorcycle and suffered a broken leg and other injuries. Initially his condition did not appear life-threatening, but he died the following day from a pulmonary embolism caused by the collision. The 39-year-old patrolman had been a member of the CHP for three years.
Carlo A. Poggetto
Joseph Lacey
Elza P. Fitzpatrick, Jr.
Officer Elza P. Fitzpatrick, Jr. spotted an abandoned vehicle wanted in connection with an armed robbery, called in his report and requested assistance. Fitzpatrick was continuing his investigation of the unoccupied vehicle when the vehicle’s driver returned in a taxi. As the patrol officer was questioning the suspect, the man reached for a revolver. Smith grabbed the suspect but was fatally wounded in the struggle. Two deputies arrived on the scene and shot the suspect. The 45-year-old patrolman had served eight years with the Patrol. Prior to joining the CHP he had been Chief of Police for the city of Tulelake and served six years as a deputy sheriff in Los Angeles.
Harry “Merle” Miller
Chief Merle Miller (age 40) was shot and killed by a man who had sworn revenge against the chief for several previous arrests. The man walked up to Chief Miller from behind and shot him four times as the chief talked to a man at a local gas station. The suspect committed suicide after murdering Chief Miller. Chief Miller had served with the Westmorland Police Department for several years. He was survived by his expectant wife and son.
Charles T. Smith
Officer Charles T. Smith stopped a vehicle for speeding on U.S. Highway 99 near Orland. Something suspicious apparently alerted him, and he decided to investigate further, not aware that the vehicle’s two occupants were AWOL Marines who had stolen the vehicle and been on a crime spree. As Smith frisked one man, the other opened fire from behind, hitting Smith three times in the back. Although mortally wounded, the officer managed to struggle to his feet and kill both suspects. Ironically Smith himself had been a Marine MP before he joined the Patrol four years earlier.