Officer Thomas P. Coleman

On Friday, June 11, 2010, at approximately 0628 hours, California Highway Patrol (CHP) Officer Thomas Coleman, I.D.# 17338, was riding his departmentally assigned motorcycle in San Bernardino County. Officer Coleman initiated an enforcement stop on a motorist traveling northbound on Mountain View, just north of Interstate 10, for a traffic violation. When the vehicle failed to yield, a pursuit ensued. While traveling eastbound on San Bernardino Avenue, in the city of Redlands, California, Officer Coleman’s motorcycle collided into the side of a tractor trailer upon entering the intersection of San Bernardino Avenue at Alabama Street (a four way intersection controlled by traffic signals). As a result of the collision, Officer Coleman sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced deceased at the scene.

Officer Coleman, age 33, graduated from the CHP Academy on March 14, 2003, and was assigned to the Altadena Area where he worked for approximately five years until his transfer to the San Bernardino Area. Officer Coleman is survived by his wife, Jamie; son, Ryan; daughter, Shaylen; mother and step-father, Janice and Bill; sisters, Kathleen, Jennifer and Mary; and brother, Joseph.