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.