Illinois State Police, Illinois
End of Watch: Sunday, May 14, 1972
Age: 37
Tour of Duty: 15 years
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Automobile crash
Date of Incident: May 14, 1972
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Charged with reckless homicide
Trooper Frank Dunbar was killed in an automobile accident while patrolling Route 37, north of Benton.
Trooper Dunbar was traveling south in his marked patrol car when a 19-year-old man began to pass another vehicle heading north. Just as he noticed Trooper Dunbar approaching, he tried to veer back into the northbound lane, but was unable to keep the car under control. The vehicle flipped end-over-end into the oncoming trooper. The top of Trooper Dunbar's squad car was completely sheered off by the rolling car. Trooper Dunbar died en route to the hospital.
The other driver was charged with reckless homicide, reckless driving, and improper lane usage.
Trooper Dunbar was the first trooper in 26 years to be killed in the line of duty, and the first to be killed in a patrol car accident in southern Illinois. He joined the Illinois State Police on October 28th, 1957, and was assigned to District 13 in DuQuoin. His wife and two children survive Trooper Dunbar.