Officer Richard Duvall was shot and killed while making a traffic stop. Unbeknownst to Officer Duvall the driver was an escaped convict who had just robbed a market. As he approached the vehicle the suspect opened fire. The suspect was captured six days later after a gunfight with San Luis Obispo County deputies at a Shell Beach motel.
The suspect was convicted of first degree murder and executed in San Quentin's gas chamber on November 3, 1961. He was suspected to have had an accomplice, but they were never found.
Officer Duvall's death resulted in the agency requiring two officers to ride together during the midnight shift. He was survived by his expectant wife and daughter.
