Trooper Jason Eric Beal

Trooper Beal was struck by a vehicle while assisting a tow truck driver who was removing another vehicle from a ditch on State Road 14 in Kosciusko County during icy road conditions.

The vehicle struck the tow truck and then Trooper Beal, causing severe internal injuries. Trooper Beal was transported to a local hospital where he remained for three days and passed away shortly after being taken off of life support, one day before his 25th birthday.

Trooper Beal had served with the Indiana State Police for 13 months and was assigned to the Bremen post. He had previously served as a jailer for the Shelby County Sheriff's Dept and as a reserve police officer for the Shelbyville Police Dept. Trooper Beal was survived by his wife and a son -- who was born five months after his death.

Trooper Beal was the third trooper in ten months to be killed in the line of duty from the 56th ISP Recruit Academy which graduated in December 1998.