On the night of September 12, 2014, Corporal Bryon Keith Dickson II, a 38-year-old male Pennsylvania State Trooper, was ambushed and killed outside the Blooming Grove barracks in Pike County. As he walked out of the barracks at approximately 11:00 p.m., he was struck by a shot from a. 308 caliber rifle. When a dispatcher tried to pull him to safety, the shooter opened fire again, forcing her to retreat.
Another trooper, Alex Douglass, was also shot and seriously wounded when he came to Dickson's aid. Dickson was shot a second time and died from his wounds at the scene. A United States Marine Corps veteran, Dickson had served with the Pennsylvania State Police for seven years and was a married father of two sons.
The man responsible for the deadly ambush was identified as Eric Matthew Frein, a self-taught survivalist with a grudge against law enforcement. Investigators linked Frein to the shooting after his partially submerged SUV was discovered in a swamp a few miles from the barracks three days later. Inside the vehicle, authorities found shell casings that matched those at the crime scene, along with Frein's driver's license. This discovery triggered a massive 48-day manhunt through the dense woods of the Pocono Mountains, involving up to 1,000 law enforcement officers from various state and federal agencies. The extensive search cost an estimated $11.9 million. On October 30, 2014, U.S. Marshals captured Frein at an abandoned airfield. He was arrested without incident and was found to be in possession of a rifle and a pistol. Following his capture, Frein was placed in Dickson's handcuffs and transported in his patrol car.
Frein was charged with a dozen counts, including first-degree murder, murder of a law enforcement officer, terrorism, and attempted murder. His trial began, and on April 19, 2017, a jury found him guilty on all charges. Prosecutors argued that Frein had randomly targeted the troopers in hopes of sparking a revolution. Evidence presented at trial included his DNA on the trigger of the murder weapon and handwritten notes in which he described the attack in detail. On April 26, 2017, the jury recommended a death sentence. The following day, Eric Frein was formally sentenced to death by lethal injection for the murder of Corporal Bryon Dickson II. His death sentence has been upheld on appeal.
