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3rd CHP Officer Dies in a Month's Time
A 28-year-old California Highway Patrol Officer died this weekend on the 15 Freeway in the Barstow area. Officer Justin McGrory (pictured right) and his partner were conducting a traffic stop when a red 2009 Pontiac G6 rammed into McGrory, according to the San Bernardino Sun.
Police do not believe alcohol was involved, but the 18-year-old driver who stopped at the scene was arrested for vehicular manslaughter. The pulled-over driver and McGrory's partner were not injured.
McGrory's death is the second CHP death in San Bernardino County in three weeks and the third in the Southern California area this month.
52-year-old Officer Phillip Ortiz died last week after being a coma since a crash on June 9th. He was hit during a traffic stop on the 405 Freeway in Westwood when another driver -- apparently using the shoulder as a lane -- rammed into him, his motorcycle and the pulled-over vehicle. The crash shut down the all lanes of the 405 Freeway that morning. A memorial service for Ortiz is scheduled for Wednesday in downtown Los Angeles.
A police pursuit on June 11th left a CHP officer dead when a motorcop was struck in a Redlands intersection.
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