Roll of Honor
Incident
Trooper Ralph Tatoian was killed when his patrol car struck the back of a truck on I-44, west of St. Louis, Missouri, at approximately 4:30 am.
The trooper was responding to a search for a person suspected of shooting a sheriff's deputy in Gasconade County. Trooper Tatoian's patrol car slammed into the back of the tractor-trailer, which was pulled partially off of the highway to assist with a previous accident.
The suspect who had shot the sheriff's deputy was convicted of second-degree murder in connection with Trooper Tatoian's death.
Trooper Tatoian had served with the Missouri State Highway Patrol for 9.5 years.
Survivors
He is survived by his wife and three children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-MO-112EFA5C- 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.
Trooper Tatoian gave the Missouri State Highway Patrol 9 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of Missouri. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Trooper Tatoian.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Trooper Ralph Charles Tatoian 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 MO, 237 of 813 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 29.2% of this state's fallen. That is 1.8 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At Missouri State Highway Patrol, 18 of 33 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 54.5% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Ralph Charles Tatoian's cause is highlighted.
How Ralph Charles Tatoian Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Ralph Charles Tatoian is highlighted in Apr.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
32 officers from Missouri State Highway Patrol are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
