Officer Richard L. Simpson, 30, was responding to the scene of an automobile accident in Porterville, when a motorist turned in front of the officer and struck Simpson’s motorcycle broadside. The impact flung the patrolman to the ground, killing him almost instantly. The driver was jailed and booked for manslaughter. Simpson, a World War II veteran, had just returned to duty with the CHP after three years service in the U.S. Army.