Captain Carl Summers, struck by a hit-skip driver December 5th, 1977, died from his injuries December 10th, 1977.
Lodi Police Captain Carl Summers, who died December 10, 1977 from injuries received when he was struck by a hit-skip driver December 5th on state route 83 in Lodi, will be honored with a highway sign in a special ceremony Wednesday, April 12th. Summer was injured while investigating a group of truck thieves out of Elyria.
Captain Summers’ brother Dave Summers, who’s been doing everything he can to keep the memory of his brother alive, wrote to Governor Mike DeWine asking for something to be done to honor his late brother. DeWine recently signed House Bill 578 approving the sign that renames part of State Route 83, between U.S. 42 and Kennard Road the “Captain ‘Smokey’ Carl Edward Summers Memorial Highway”. State Senator Mark Romanchuk (R, Ontario) will be on hand for the ceremony which is to be held April 12th at 11:00am to unveil the memorial sign. Friends and family are invited to attend the ceremony held along the highway at 8223 Avon Lake Road in Lodi between Kennard Road and the Route 42 crossover. Traffic in the area will be reduced down to one lane during the ceremony to allow for the safety of those in attendance.
Officer Carl Summers shown in the lower left of this image. His brother Dave Summers in the upper right.
The night Captain Summers was injured, rookie officer Steve Gray was pursuing a suspicious truck driving through Lodi late at night. The driver of the truck fled and ultimately wrecked on route 83. Officer Gray called for back-up and Captain Summers responded. Officer Gray chased and apprehended the suspect. Summers stayed along the highway with the stolen truck. A different truck, occupied by other members of the truck theft ring came by and intentionally struck Captain Summer with the vehicle’s side-view mirror, doing about 75mph. Summers was hit in the back of the head. Before losing consciousness, Captain Summers was able to fire two shots striking the truck and knocking out the rear window of the truck's cap. The truck was found a short time later and the suspects were arrested. Summers later slipped into a coma, and died five days later. Summers was 31 years old. He left behind a wife and a daughter.
According to the Office Down Memorial Page, both suspects, age 24, were charged with murder. One was convicted of aggravated vehicular homicide and sentenced to 2 to 5 years. The driver was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to 6 to 25 years. He received an additional 10 years for motor vehicle theft.
This memorial plaque is on display in Lodi's Central Park.