On the night of April 12, 2011, a routine traffic stop in Trumann, Arkansas, ended with the death of 30-year-old Patrolman Jonathan Richard Schmidt. A four-year veteran of the Trumann Police Department, Schmidt was a married father of three who had wanted to serve as a police officer in his hometown. About 11:30 p.m., Schmidt and his sergeant, Corey Overstreet, stopped a vehicle on Pine Avenue for an insurance violation. After arresting the driver on a warrant, Schmidt moved to the rear passenger side. The male passenger, later identified as Jerry Lard, lunged at Schmidt and opened fire with a handgun.

Schmidt was shot in the neck. He pushed his sergeant out of the line of fire and returned fire, wounding Lard. Schmidt was transported to a nearby hospital and died on April 13, 2011. Dashboard camera footage from the cruiser captured the attack and Schmidt’s plea to his attacker. The case proceeded to trial and a jury found Jerry Lard guilty of capital murder and attempted capital murder, with a death sentence imposed.

If anyone in Trumann that night saw the vehicle stopped on Pine Avenue or has additional information about the incident, please share what is known.