Lewis Edward Phillips
Agency patch
Trooper

Lewis Edward Phillips

Indiana State Police — Indianapolis, IN
Accident
End of Watch April 16, 1975
Age 26
Tour of Duty 2 yrs 1 mo
The Vigil Panel 115 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Trooper Lewis Phillips was killed in an automobile accident near Springville in LaPorte County while responding to assist another trooper who was pursuing a traffic violator. Trooper Phillips was traveling westbound on U.S. 20 when his patrol car crested a hill and was struck by a semitrailer whose driver was making an illegal U-turn and was blocking all four lanes of the roadway. The truck driver was charged with involuntary manslaughter, disobeying a traffic control device and having an inadequate log book. Trooper Phillips had served with the Indiana State Police for 11 months, being killed five days before completing his status as a probationary trooper and was assigned to the Dunes Park post. He had previously served as a weighman in the Motor Carrier Division for 11 months.

Survivors

Trooper Phillips was survived by his parents and brother.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-IN-5EA6445B
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.
Trooper Phillips gave the Indiana State Police 2 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of Indiana. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Trooper Phillips.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Type State Police
Location Indianapolis, IN
Platform Identity insp.in.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch April 16, 1975
Tour of Duty 2 yrs 1 mo
Age 26
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Trooper Lewis Edward Phillips is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.

In IN, 151 of 503 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 30% of this state's fallen. That is 30 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Indiana State Police, 23 of 46 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 50% of this agency's fallen.

Indiana State Police
23
of 46 officers
50% Accident
IN — Statewide
151
of 503 officers
30% Accident
Nationwide
1
of 97,772 officers
0% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Lewis Edward Phillips's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
1 (0%)
Accident
1 (0%)
Illness
1 (0%)
Cardiac
1 (0%)
Undetermined
1 (0%)
Suicide
1 (0%)

How Lewis Edward Phillips Compares

Age at Death
26
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
2.1
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Lewis Edward Phillips is highlighted in Apr.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
708
May
848
Jun
797
Jul
899
Aug
938
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897

Incident Location