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Incident
Police Officer Kelley Smythe and Police Officer Chance Whiteman were killed in a helicopter accident while assisting patrol officers during a car chase. Dispatchers lost contact with the helicopter during the chase. It was later discovered to have struck a tree and crashed near 66th Street and Lakewood Avenue. The helicopter program was only ten days old at the time of the accident. Officer Smythe had served with the Tulsa Police Department for four years.
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- 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 Smythe gave the Tulsa Police Department 4 years.
Thank you for your service to the Tulsa community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Police Officer Smythe.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
The Sacrifice · Accident
Tulsa Police Department has lost 42 officers; 11 of them lost to accidents.
Kelley is one of 135 officers lost to accidents in OK, 23.2% of the 582 remembered there.
Kelley is one of 8,276 officers lost to accidents in the United States, 30% of the 27,551 remembered there.
Kelley is one of 10,096 officers lost to accidents worldwide, 29.6% of the 34,102 remembered here.
34,102 officers are remembered on this memorial. Each number below is one of them.
Time
In 1982, 2 officers at Tulsa Police Department were lost to accidents, more than in any other year.
In 1982, 3 officers in OK were lost to accidents, the 4th heaviest of 78 years on record. The heaviest was 1980, with 4.
In 1982, 70 officers in the United States were lost to accidents, the 48th heaviest of 174 years on record. The heaviest was 1929, with 118.
In 1982, 87 officers worldwide were lost to accidents, the 43rd heaviest of 200 years on record. The heaviest was 1930, with 131.
Who
Kelley was 25. Of the 4 lost to accidents at Tulsa Police Department whose age is recorded, half were between 27.3 and 35.8; the middle age was 31.5. Kelley had served 4 years; the middle length of service was 4 years.
Kelley was 25. Of the 118 lost to accidents in OK whose age is recorded, half were between 30 and 48.8; the middle age was 38. Kelley had served 4 years; the middle length of service was 6 years.
Kelley was 25. Of the 7,718 lost to accidents in the United States whose age is recorded, half were between 29 and 46; the middle age was 36. Kelley had served 4 years; the middle length of service was 6 years.
Kelley was 25. Of the 9,452 lost to accidents worldwide whose age is recorded, half were between 29 and 45; the middle age was 36. Kelley had served 4 years; the middle length of service was 6 years.
When
March holds 36.4% of these deaths at Tulsa Police Department, more than any other month. Fridays: 36.4%.
March holds 12.6% of these deaths in OK, more than any other month. Fridays: 12.6%.
March holds 7.4% of these deaths in the United States; August holds the most, 9.4%. Fridays: 15.1%.
March holds 7.4% of these deaths worldwide; August holds the most, 9.3%. Fridays: 15%.
How
Accident deaths account for 26.2% of all 42 deaths at Tulsa Police Department, the 2nd most common cause.
Accident deaths account for 23.2% of all 582 deaths in OK, the 2nd most common cause.
Accident deaths account for 30% of all 27,551 deaths in the United States, the 2nd most common cause.
Accident deaths account for 29.6% of all 34,102 deaths worldwide, the 2nd most common cause.
His people
Tulsa Police Department has 42 officers remembered here, Kelley among them.
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John Herrod Nov 9, 1917
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Glenn Allison
Feb 7, 1918
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W. C. Meacham
Jun 8, 1920
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Ed Yoakum Oct 27, 1920
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Harry H. Aurandt
Dec 20, 1921
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Robert Donnelly Feb 26, 1922
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Robert Jackson
Oct 31, 1927
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William Sydney Brooks
Dec 31, 1930
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James Wooley
Jan 23, 1931
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Henry C. Morrison Apr 23, 1933
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Lawrence B. Mitchell
Jul 22, 1934
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Walter N. Clark
Dec 10, 1936
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Edward W. Von Holten
Mar 24, 1937
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L. R. Rogers
Mar 16, 1941
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Walter C. Busch, Sr.
Oct 11, 1944
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Gerald M. St. Clair
Sep 2, 1946
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Sylvester Cormack
Sep 12, 1946
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Ben Johnston
Jan 3, 1947
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Ray Cowan
Feb 4, 1947
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Lawrence Inman
Mar 13, 1947
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Claude Silas Lynch
Nov 28, 1948
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James S. Peters
Apr 14, 1949
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Cornelius W. White
May 18, 1951
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Wallace Eugene Casey
May 12, 1957
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Nelson F. Williams
Jun 2, 1958
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Alan Yerton
Dec 24, 1959
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Thomas E. Milstead Nov 30, 1960
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Leroy E. Cowles
Sep 8, 1961
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Hubert Gerald Greer
Apr 27, 1962
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George Lee Brady
Apr 13, 1963
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Jerome Thurman Spybuck
Apr 3, 1971
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Glenn Truman Wortham
Jul 15, 1973
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Carl V. Kime, Jr.
Nov 5, 1979
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Don L. Byerley
Dec 15, 1980
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Fabrienne Margot Van Arsdell
Jul 25, 1981
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Kelley L. Smythe
Mar 26, 1982
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Chance Frederick Whiteman, III
Mar 26, 1982
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James Albert Slay
Nov 10, 1986
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Constantine George Spanos
Apr 23, 1993
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Dick Vernon Hobson, Jr.
Jun 11, 1996
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Craig Vincent Johnson
Jun 30, 2020
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Jerad Matthew Lindsey
Oct 28, 2020
Where
Where the Name Is Cut
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial · Panel 37-W
What is kept
Photographs, film, sound and papers — what survived a life.
Others Who Wore This Badge
41 officers from Tulsa Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
