St. Francois County Sheriff's Office, Missouri
End of Watch: Monday, July 4, 2016
Age: 55
Tour of Duty: 18 years
Badge Number: 963
Cause of Death: Vehicular assault
Date of Incident: October 27, 2015
Weapon Used: Automobile
Suspect Info: Arrested
Deputy Sheriff Paul Clark died from complications of injuries sustained on October 27th, 2015, when he was intentionally struck by a stolen vehicle near Desloge, Missouri.
He had conducted a traffic stop of a second vehicle on Highway 67, near Highway Y, and was attempting to identify the occupants. Deputy Clark asked one of the occupants who was unable to produce identification to walk back to his police car with him. The man suddenly jumped into a truck that was parked nearby and attempted to flee.
The mans swerved towards Deputy Clark, striking him and throwing him several feet into a ditch on the shoulder of the road. The man, who was wanted on a federal probation violation warrant, was arrested after leading other officers on a pursuit.
Deputy Clark suffered a broken back as a result of the incident. He suffered complications as a result of the injury and died at home on July 4th, 2016.
Deputy Clark had served with the St. Francois County Sheriff's Department for 13 years and had previously served with the Park Hills Police Department for five years. He was survived by his wife, two children, and grandchildren.