In the summer of 1996, a dedicated and respected officer of the Tulsa Police Department, Senior Patrol Officer Dick Vernon Hobson, Jr., lost his life in a violent confrontation. The 45-year-old male officer, an 18-year veteran of the force and a United States Army veteran, was responding to a robbery call with his partner on the evening of Monday, June 10, 1996.
The officers pursued a suspect into an alley near Second Street and Greenwood Avenue.
After losing sight of the individual, both officers exited their patrol car to continue the search on foot. As they moved through the alley, the suspect suddenly emerged from behind a bush and opened fire with a 20-gauge shotgun. Officer Hobson, who was not wearing a protective vest, was struck in the chest. His partner was also wounded, sustaining a gunshot to the leg.
Other officers who had arrived at the scene immediately returned fire, fatally wounding the suspect. There were no subsequent arrests as the sole perpetrator was killed at the scene. Officer Hobson was rushed to Columbia Tulsa Regional Medical Center, but he succumbed to his injuries the following morning, on Tuesday, June 11, 1996. The dedicated K-9 officer left behind two young children, his parents, four brothers, and a sister. His canine partner, Dino, was retired from the force and given to his family.
