Last week, the Palm Springs Police Department commemorated Officer Gale Gene Eldridge, a member of their force who was tragically killed by an armed robber in 1961. Eldridge is one of four officers from the Palm Springs Police Department (PSPD) who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
"63 years later, PSPD Remembers Officer Gale Gene Eldridge. End of Watch, January 18, 1961," the department stated in a Facebook post.
According to the Palm Springs Police Officers’ Association website, on January 18, 1961, at 7:45 p.m., Eldridge pulled over a vehicle for a traffic violation. The driver informed Eldridge that he was en route to a party on the "Reservation," located in the 200 block of South Indian Avenue. Eldridge did not detain the driver. However, shortly after this encounter, the same individual was implicated in a robbery in Banning. In response to this development, Eldridge requested backup to meet him at the "Reservation." Officer Quincy Welch responded to this call and both officers approached the scene from different directions.
The Palm Springs Police Officers’ Association website further details that Eldridge reported over police radio that he had intercepted the suspect and had exited his patrol car. Moments later, Welch heard two gunshots. Upon arriving at the scene, Welch discovered Eldridge face down inside his patrol car with a gunshot wound to his stomach. His firearm lay unfired at his feet. The suspect was found in his own vehicle with a gunshot wound to his head; two shots had been discharged from his weapon. Both men were pronounced dead at the scene.
According to records from the Palm Springs Police Officer’s Association website, Eldridge was just 32 years old when he died. He left behind his wife and three children.