Roll of Honor
Incident
Officer Rea was shot and killed during a shootout while investigating a burglary at a warehouse. As he and the assistant chief arrived at the scene in a patrol car they observed the suspect run in between two houses. Officer Rea exited the patrol car with his shotgun and pursued on foot as the assistant chief drove around the corner to cut the suspect off. When the suspect emerged from on the other side of the houses he fired at the patrol car and he then ran back between the houses. When he did so he was confronted by Officer Rea. The two exchanged shots and Officer Rea was struck once in the head. The suspect escaped. On April 2, 1967, a tip led to the arrest of the suspect in Montara, San Mateo County. On August 8, 1967, the suspect, now 54, was sentenced to death but the sentence was later commuted to life in 1972. He was released in 1981 and died in 2002. Officer Rea had served with the agency for 7 years. He was survived by his wife and four children. On January 26, 1971, a hiker walking in the Mojave Desert near Baker, California, came across some old bones that would lead to one of most sensational murder investigations and the oldest murder case solved in California history. The bones were that of an adult female. With no way to identify the remains the case stalled. The tip that led to Ofiicer Rea's killer's arrest came from his wife. What she did not tell police was the reason she told on him. She was afraid her husband was going to kill her over a murder they committed together in 1946. In 1975 for no known reason, the suspect in Folsom Prison, admitted to a murder in 1946 that officials knew nothing about. He told them that his wife shot and killed a woman she caught him in bed with. He said they took her body to a the Mojave Desert near Baker where they buried her. Officials realized the location was either very near or was the locaton of where a woman's remains were found in 1971. Officials could not find a second set of bones and still had no way to
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and four children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-8F2310C5- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Police Officer Rea gave the North Sacramento Police Department 7 years.
Thank you for your service to the Sacramento community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Rea.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Police Officer Francis Melvin Rea is one of 1 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.
In CA, 974 of 1,837 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 53% of this state's fallen. That is 53 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.
At North Sacramento Police Department, 2 of 2 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 100% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Francis Melvin Rea's cause is highlighted.
How Francis Melvin Rea Compares
When Felonious Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Francis Melvin Rea is highlighted in Jan.
Weapons Used Against Officers
Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. Francis Melvin Rea was killed by handgun.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
1 officer from North Sacramento Police Department are honored on badge.nw.
