NEIGHBORS, FRIENDS MOURN TROOPER'S DEATH

Sgt. Randy Sullivan of the Missouri State Highway Patrol will be laid to rest this afternoon at Marcus Memorial Park following a funeral at Meadow Heights Baptist Church east of Fredericktown.

Not only will the residents of Fredericktown mourn the loss of the 17-year veteran of the patrol, but residents of his hometown, Piedmont, also were thinking of his family following the accident that claimed the 40-year-old Sullivan and seriously injured a recruit, Christopher R. Thomson, 23, of Pilot Knob.

Sullivan lost control of his patrol car while trying to catch up to a speeder Saturday evening seven miles west of Fredericktown on Highway 72. When the car left the roadway, the gas tank ruptured, causing an explosion and fire. Sullivan was trapped inside.

Thomson somehow got out of the vehicle. He was listed in satisfactory condition Monday evening at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau.

Sgt. Brent Davis said Sullivan was the 18th trooper to be killed in the line of duty. He said this was the first time in Troop E that a trooper was killed in a car accident while with a recruit.

"He was a super guy," said Piedmont Police Chief Bob Frye. "He had family here, and he always stopped by when he was in town.

"A lot of people know him because he still has family here. It's a sad thing."

Funeral service will be at the church where Sullivan was a deacon and Sunday School teacher.

"He was a very faithful Christian and dedicated to his family and his church," said Rev. Jim DeSpain, the pastor at Meadow Heights Baptist Church.

DeSpain said Sullivan was a hard worker and dependable. "He also taught his kids the value of hard work," he said.

Sullivan is survived by his wife and three children, ages 14, 12 and 6.