Deputy Sheriff Dirk Alan Leonardson

Dirk Alan Leonardson

Deputy Sheriff Dirk Leonardson was accidentally shot and killed by another officer in a case of mistaken identity.

Deputy Leonardson was at home when he went outside to investigate suspicious noise in his apartment complex, which had recently been the target of vandals. Deputy Leonardson was carrying his gun when an officer from the Blythe Police Department observed him in a dim light and shot him after mistaking him for an armed criminal.

Deputy Leonardson had served with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department for two years. He was survived by his wife and parents.