Trooper David C. Yarrington, 24, a United States Navy veteran who had served with the Delaware State Police for nearly three years, died of wounds sustained on January 6, 1972. He and his partner, Trooper Ronald Carey, had been investigating an armed robbery at a motel near the Pennsylvania state line and later located a vehicle at a nearby hotel that matched the suspects description.

A struggle with a 30-year-old male suspect ensued, and the man’s 19-year-old female companion emerged and opened fire. Trooper Carey was killed at the scene; Trooper Yarrington was mortally wounded and died the next day. The suspects, described as Canadian and linked to armed robberies in Michigan and Ohio, fled but were located the following day in Maryland. The male suspect was shot and killed during a high-speed chase; the woman was taken into custody and later convicted on two counts of armed robbery. Her death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment, and as of 2017 she remained incarcerated. Trooper Yarrington was survived by his wife and child.