Trooper Jimmie E. Linegar - Badge #865


Just six weeks after the death of Trooper James M. Froemsdorf, the Patrol was again struck with tragedy when Trooper Jimmie E. Linegar, 31, was shot to death on April 15, 1985, at the intersection of U.S. Highway 65 and Missouri Highway 86 south of Branson, Missouri, in Taney County.

Tpr. Linegar and Trooper Allen D. Hines were conducting a spotcheck when Tpr. Linegar stopped David C. Tate and ran his license. Neither Tpr. Linegar nor Tpr. Hines was aware that the man they had stopped had just been indicted by a federal grand jury for involvement in a neo-Nazi group accused of murder. Tate shot Tpr. Linegar with a machine pistol as Tpr. Linegar approached the van to ask more questions. In the ensuing gun battle, Tpr. Hines was wounded and Tate ran into the nearby woods.

After another extensive manhunt involving local, county, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, Tate was apprehended on April 20, 1985. It was a citizen who recognized Tate and reported his whereabouts to law enforcement officers that enabled the capture to be made without any further incidents. Tate was convicted of the murder of Tpr. Linegar and was given a sentence of life in prison.

Trooper Jimmie E. Linegar, 31, was the 13th officer killed in the line of duty. He was survived by his wife, a 5-year-old daughter, and a 3-year-old son.