Travis County Constable's Office - Precinct 3, Texas
End of Watch: Monday, May 20, 1985
Age: 59
Tour of Duty: 9 years
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Automobile crash
Date of Incident: May 3, 1985
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Around 6:00 a.m. on May 3, 1985, Chief Deputy Constable David E. Nelson was traveling in 5500 block of U.S. Highway 290 in the Oak Hill community heading to Lake Travis to serve some civil papers. A large flatbed tractor trailer backed out of a parking lot. Nelson did not react fast enough and collided with the truck. He was taken to Brackenridge Hospital where he died from his injuries at 2:25 a.m. on May 20, 1985. He was 7 days short of his 60th birthday.
Nelson was survived by his wife, Beatrice Carlson Nelson, two sisters and two brothers. He was buried in the Capital Memorial Gardens Cemetery in Austin.