Paul Wesley Harlan

Joplin Police Department — Joplin, MO

Accident

End of Watch December 6, 1979

The Vigil Panel 122 ›

Gender Male

Incident Service The Sacrifice Department 20

Incident

Patrolman Paul Harlan succumbed to injuries sustained on Thanksgiving Day, November 22nd, 1979, when he was involved in a crash at the intersection of Main Street and Murphy Boulevard during a high-speed pursuit. He was pursuing a juvenile who had been involved in an earlier hit-and-run crash when both vehicles went out of control and struck a brick wall. The juvenile fled the scene on foot but was arrested in Texas on November 29th, 1979, and extradited to Missouri. Patrolman Harlan was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries on December 6th, 1979.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier: BO-US-MO-D794D242
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.
Patrolman Harlan served with the Joplin Police Department.
Thank you for your service to the Joplin community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Harlan.

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

Agency

Department Joplin Police Department

Location Joplin, MO

Platform Identity jpd.jasper.mo.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch December 6, 1979

Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Offender Cause: Automobile crash

Patrolman Paul Wesley Harlan 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 Joplin Police Department, 4 of 21 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 19% of this agency's fallen.

Joplin Police Department

of 21 officers

19% Accident

MO — Statewide

237

of 813 officers

29.2% Accident

Nationwide

10,088

of 32,508 officers

31% Accident