A broken cross was all that remained of a roadside memorial in honor of Rick Cromwell on Wednesday morning. (Jennifer M. Howell/News-Sentinel)

Makeshift roadside memorial to Lodi police officer gone

All that's left of Lodi Motor Officer Rick Cromwell's roadside memorial on Kettleman Lane near Crescent Avenue is a divot in the recently mowed grass and half of a wooden cross.

It looks as if the memorial which had stood since Cromwell's December 1998 death following a collision with a car driven by an elderly Ione man, has been run over with a lawnmower.

"All of the people that knew Rick and understood what he gave his life for, he'll still be in our hearts whether there's (a memorial) or not," Police Chief Jerry Adams said Wednesday. He was unaware that the memorial had been demolished.

The makeshift memorial -- located between Bank of America and Burger King on a grassy median -- was probably the most recognized roadside remembrance in Lodi.

It used to be bright with silk flowers and included a white 12 inch-tall cross, a constant reminder to motorists that someone perished there.

Neither Cromwell family members nor property owners could be reached Wednesday for comment.

Retired Motor Officer Lee Patterson said he noticed the memorial's absence about two weeks ago.

"I thought it was nice that somebody kept doing that, but I never knew who kept it up."

Rick Cromwell

According to News-Sentinel archives, in the months after Cromwell's death, hundreds of flowers, candles and other items were carefully placed by residents on the sidewalk and grass at the scene of the accident. In the years since, the memorial has slowly dwindled.

Cromwell, the first and only Lodi officer killed in the line of duty, was chasing a speeder when his motorcycle struck a car on Kettleman Lane in December 1998.

Soon thereafter, with the help of then-Police Chief Larry Hansen and former state Sen. Patrick Johnston, D-Stockton, signs went up along Kettleman Lane in Lodi in Cromwell's name. Kettleman Lane is also Highway 12, and that's why it took Johnston to get a section of the highway named for him as a permanent memorial.