South Carolina Highway Patrol, South Carolina
End of Watch: Saturday, December 14, 1991
Age: 24
Tour of Duty: 1 year, 6 months
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Automobile crash
Date of Incident: December 5, 1991
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Trooper O'Brien died from injuries he sustained in an on-duty automobile accident nine days earlier. Trooper O'Brien suffered severe leg damage when he lost control of his patrol car and veered into the path of a truck.
Trooper O'Brien had been with the South Carolina Highway Patrol for 18 months. He was survived by his wife, parents, sister, and brother. While in the hospital that he had made Trooper of the Year. Trooper O'Brien's brother also served in law enforcement with the North Charleston Police Department.
In 2007, state officials renamed the Garden Corner intersection, at the junction of U.S. Highways 17 and 21, the “Trooper David Hunter O’Brien Interchange".