Trooper Dale Benjamin Courtney

Dale Benjamin Courtney

Trooper Bennie Courtney was shot and killed after responding to a call of shots being fired at a farm in Tigard, Oregon.

When he arrived, he found a 14-year-old boy and a 15-year-old boy inside the farmhouse. As Trooper Courtney approached the house, the 14-year-old shot and killed him with a shotgun. The boy then shot and wounded the farmhouse owner and escaped.

Both boys, who had escaped a juvenile facility, were later arrested, convicted, and sentenced to prison. They were both later paroled.

Trooper Courtney was a U.S. Army veteran of World War II. He had served with the Oregon State Police for four months and previously served with the McMinnville Police Department. He was survived by his expectant wife, daughter, mother, and brother.