George Ray Ratliff

Private George Ratliff was killed in a vehicle crash while pursuing a speeding motorist at the intersection of Wilson Road and Newman Highway near Fort Bliss.

Private Ratliff and another military policeman were traveling west on Wilson Road with their sirens blaring, attempting to apprehend a speeding vehicle. As their military police vehicle approached the intersection, it struck a car traveling south on Newman Highway, driven by local college students returning home from an event. After the patrol vehicle collided with the car, it struck a telephone pole, overturned, and landed on top of the other car, which had also overturned. Private Ratliff was on the passenger side and died at the scene. The driver of the other vehicle succumbed to his injuries later that night. The other military policeman and the three other students all recovered from the incident.

Witnesses stated that the vehicle the military police were chasing was traveling at an excessive speed, and the sirens were heard four blocks away. None of the members of the accident recall the moments leading up to or the accident. The speeding driver was never apprehended.

Private Ratliff was assigned to the First Cavalry Division, Headquarters Troop stationed at Fort Bliss.

He was survived by his mother and brother.