Roll of Honor
Incident
Officer Joe Kerley and Officer Glenn Winans were instantly killed when their patrol car struck a train in dense fog. Officer George Bredenberg succumbed to his injuries three days later. The three officers were responding to a prowler car when the accident occurred. The impact was so great that the refrigerated car that they struck was derailed. Officer Winans and Officer Kerley were in the front seats and Officer Bredenberg was in the rear seat. The accident occurred at midnight during the shift change. Officer Winans and Officer Kerley were just getting off work. Officer Bredenberg was just reporting to duty. Officer Kerley had been with the Turlock Police Department for seven years.
Survivors
He was a widower and was survived by his son and two brothers.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-5EB6A090- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Police Officer Kerley gave the Turlock Police Department 7 years.
Thank you for your service to the Turlock community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Kerley.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Police Officer Joseph Edward Kerley is one of 10,088 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In CA, 719 of 1,837 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 39.1% of this state's fallen. That is 8.1 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At Turlock Police Department, 4 of 5 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 80% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Joseph Edward Kerley's cause is highlighted.
How Joseph Edward Kerley Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Joseph Edward Kerley is highlighted in Nov.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
4 officers from Turlock Police Department are honored on badge.nw.
