Duty Death: Jesse Valdez - [Harris County]
End of Service: 28/10/2014
By Police1 Staff
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — A deputy has died following a head-on collision with a parolee now charged with drug possession.
The Houston Chronicle reports 32-year-old Jesse Valdez III was driving in his patrol car when an SUV crossed into oncoming traffic at an intersection and slammed into Valdez’s vehicle.
Valdez was flown via medical helicopter to a trauma center where he was pronounced dead.
The driver of the SUV, 29-year-old Kelly Jo Ivey, has been charged with possession of a controlled substance – methamphetamine – in connection to the incident.
Police told the Houston Chronicle she appeared to be impaired at the scene and a blood sample has been taken.
A passenger in the SUV was treated at the scene for injuries.
Ivey pleaded guilty in March to drug possession charges and was sentenced to two years in prison. She was released on parole in October. Ivey had also spent time in prison in two theft cases, according to the report.
Valdez was an 11-year veteran of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.