May 3, 2011
A California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) warden who died in the
line of duty in 1959 is finally receiving the recognition he
deserves. Thanks to the efforts of a captain and several staff
members in DFG’s Fresno office, Warden Clarence Lester Brown is being
honored alongside other fallen California peace officers at two
separate services at the California State Capitol in Sacramento, and
the Peace Officers Memorial in Fresno. His name will also be added to
the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington D.C.
The
60-year-old game warden, who had worked for DFG for 32 years, was
killed in a vehicle accident while on patrol on April 3, 1959. At
about 9 p.m., he lost control of his patrol vehicle and plunged to
the bottom of a canyon about six miles west of Coalinga on Highway
198. Warden Brown was survived by his wife and two children.
For decades, Warden Brown’s story was lost to history. In May 2010,
when staff at DFG’s Fresno offices began an extensive purge of old
archived files, an employee found a report detailing Warden Brown’s
accident. She gave the file to Capt. Nathaniel Arnold, who realized
that the warden’s name was not among those previously known to the
Law Enforcement Division as having been killed in the line of duty.
When an investigation concluded that Warden Brown had not been
properly recognized as a peace officer killed in the line of duty,
Capt. Arnold took the necessary steps to formally honor the warden’s
sacrifice.
“This has been one of the most fulfilling cases I have had the
pleasure of working on and overseeing in my career with the
Department,” said Capt. Arnold. “It is time to recognize a fallen
officer whose story has been lost for nearly 51 years.”
Warden Brown’s grandson Tom Price and his wife Judy with DFG Law
Enforcement Chief Nancy Foley.
Two of Warden Brown’s grandsons, their wives and one
great-granddaughter were present in Sacramento on May 2 as Warden
Brown became the twenty-first California Game Warden immortalized as
a peace officer killed in the line of duty. His name will be added to
the honor roll at the California Peace Officers Memorial on Capitol
Mall. Warden Brown’s name will also be added to the Fresno County
Peace Officers Memorial at a service on May 3, and in the coming
weeks, he will be honored at the National Law Enforcement Officers
Memorial in Washington D.C.
“These brave wardens and their families can never be repaid for their
sacrifice, but they will also never be forgotten,” said Nancy Foley,
Chief of the DFG Law Enforcement Division.
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