Bloomsburg Police Department, Pennsylvania
End of Watch: Sunday, August 21, 1927
Age: 42
Tour of Duty: 8 months
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Struck by vehicle
Date of Incident: August 21, 1927
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Chief of Police Franklin Dent was struck and killed by a vehicle while directing traffic at the intersection of Berwick Road and Locust Street.
Upon seeing a speeding car Chief Dent blew his whistle and stepped into the roadway to stop it. The driver of the vehicle instead increased its speed and turned off its lights.
In an attempt to avoid being struck, Chief Dent stepped backward into the path of an oncoming vehicle. He was transported to Bloomsburg Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries. The driver of the vehicle he attempted to stop was never identified.
Chief Dent was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran of the Spanish-American War and had served with the Bloomsburg Police Department for only eight months. He was survived by his wife and four children.