Patrolman Richard Warren Jackson

Richard Warren Jackson

Patrolman Richard Jackson was killed in an automobile crash during a pursuit near Newport that reached 110 mph around 10:00 p.m.

He and his partner were pursuing a speeding vehicle being driven by a 16-year-old when he lost control of his patrol car, striking a telephone pole and then a group of trees. Both patrolmen were taken to hospital, where Patrolman Jackson was pronounced dead on arrival. His partner recovered later from his injuries.

The driver was convicted of reckless driving and received a 2-year suspended sentence; their driver's license was suspended for two years, placed on probation, and his parents were ordered to pay his wife $4000. Only a few months later, he was involved in a wreck in Pitt County while drunk. He was sentenced to two years in prison and had his license suspended for an additional two years. On June 14, 1954, he was involved in another chase on a 20-mile stretch of Highway 70 west of New Bern when a trooper tried to stop him for suspected drunk driving in his new Corvette convertible. The trooper said he was too fast to catch up with, and only with the help of other troopers was he boxed in and forced to stop. The 21-year-old was extremely intoxicated and forced seven other drivers into roadside ditches. He was convicted of reckless and drunk driving, fined $500, and his license was permanently revoked.

Patrolman Jackson was a United States Army WWII veteran. He was survived by his wife and two children.