Carrollton police identify officer and 82-year-driver killed in car crash on highway
A Carrollton police officer has died from his injuries after his vehicle was hit by a passing car while he was responding to a call on a highway, Carrollton police said Wednesday.
Carrollton police identified the officer as Steve Nothem, who was in his patrol car when it was struck while he was assisting another officer on a driving while intoxication investigation.
The 82-year-old driver in the car that hit the officer’s vehicle also died in the crash. He was identified as Phillip Parker of Carrollton.
“We all know the heavy risk in public safety today, especially out on our highways,” said Rex Redden, executive director of public safety in Carrollton and the acting police chief, in a Wednesday news conference. “Our police family is in mourning.”
Police were at the scene just before 10:30 p.m. Tuesday in the 1900 block of the President George Bush Turnpike at the time of the accident.
Nothem had just arrived to back up a fellow officer on a DWI arrest when his squad car was hit at 10:24 p.m. Wednesday with Nothem still inside.
An investigation continued Wednesday on what caused the 82-year-old driver to hit the patrol car, Carrollton police said.
“We lost a beloved officer in the line of duty overnight,” Carrollton police posted on social media.
After being hit, the officer was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Parker died at the scene.
Carrollton police were at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, 6200 W. Parker Road in Plano, until early Wednesday, then took the officer in a procession to the Collin County Medical Examiner’s Office, where fellow officers lined up to salute him, WFAA-TV reported.
Nothem leaves his wife, a 13-year-old son, twin 6-year-old sons, a 1-year-old-daughter, and many extended family members. He joined the Carrollton Police Department in March 2020 after serving the Grand Chute, Wisconsin, Police Department for four years. Prior to his law enforcement career, Nothem served for many years in the U.S. Marines.
The officer was the first to be killed in the line of duty in Carrollton.
Funeral arrangements for Nothem are pending.
Nothem is the second North Texas officer to die within a week.
Dallas police Officer Jacob Arellano, 25, died Oct. 12 at a hospital after he was critically injured in an accident caused by a wrong-way driver, police have said.
The driver who hit the Dallas officer’s car head-on, Mayra Rebollar, 31, faces a charge of intoxication manslaughter, police said.
A memorial service for Arellano was being held in Richardson on Wednesday morning.
This story was originally published October 19, 2022 at 5:05 AM.
