Trooper killed in 1985 crash honored with I-75 dedication

A Southwest Florida Highway Patrol trooper was honored more than 30 years after he died in the line of duty.

Trooper Lindell Gibbons died in a car crash following a police chase in 1985, and today, troopers dedicated a section of I-75 in Collier County to him.

The stretch of road between mile marker 100 and 102, near Collier Boulevard and Golden Gate Parkway, will be dedicated as the “Trooper Lindell J. Gibbons Memorial Highway.”

According to the Officer Down Memorial Organization, 48 Florida State Troopers have died in the line of duty. Six of them were hit by a vehicle, and four died after vehicular pursuits and assaults.

Gibbons’ son hopes this reminds drivers that carelessness is what caused his father to lose his life, “Get out of the way. Get out of the way. Those guys are risking their lives on the side of the road.“

His son also says, besides this memorial dedication, he’ll always remember his father as a dedicated trooper who loved to hunt and fish with his kids on his days off.