California Highway Patrol, California
End of Watch: Sunday, April 11, 1971
Age: 49
Tour of Duty: 16 years
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Heart attack
Date of Incident: April 10, 1971
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Officer Robert Quirk suffered a fatal heart attack several hours after being involved in a foot pursuit.
The foot pursuit started at approximately 1:50 pm after he encountered three pedestrians on the shoulder of I-5, south of Route 36, in Red Bluff, California. He advised dispatchers that the three were running from him. When a backup officer arrived he located Officer Quirk walking all three subjects back towards his patrol car.
After Officer Quirk's shift ended he returned home and started experiencing chest pains. He suffered a fatal heart attack approximately 11 hours later.
Officer Quirk had served with the California Highway Patrol for 16 years. He is survived by his wife and five children.