Oklahoma Highway Patrol, Oklahoma
End of Watch: Sunday, June 28, 1970
Age: 34
Tour of Duty: 5 years
Badge Number: 250
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: June 28, 1970
Weapon Used: Officer's handgun
Suspect Info: Committed suicide
Trooper Howard Crumley was shot and killed with his own service revolver while making a traffic stop of a speeding car.
Unbeknownst to Trooper Crumley, the two brothers who were in the car had just murdered another man before being pulled over. As Trooper Crumley searched one of the suspects on the hood of his patrol car the second suspect confronted him with a weapon and disarmed him of his service revolver. One of the suspects then shot him and the two fled.
The suspects abducted a couple a short time later and began to drive around the area. After releasing the male hostage they forced the female hostage to continue driving. At some point one of the brothers committed suicide and the other brother forced the woman to drive him to a hospital.
After leaving the hospital the pair were followed by a security guard. When the suspect went into the home of another brother the security guard contacted the female and then contacted police, who arrested the man at the location. The suspect was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. He was denied parole in December 2014 and again in December 2017.
Trooper Crumley had served with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol for five years. He was survived by his wife and three sons.