END OF WATCH: August 29, 1967
Broadview Heights Police Department
Almost a year to the day after Broadview Heights Police Chief Alex Kloka died of a heart attack, his son, Brian, who subsequently joined the department, became the only Broadview Heights police officer to die in the line of duty.
After the death of his father, Brian took and passed the civil service examination to join the department. In December of 1966 he quit his construction job and began to follow in his father’s footsteps. In the early morning hours of August 29, 1967, Patrolman Kloka was involved in a high-speed chase, the likes of which had earned his father the nickname, “Flying Dutchman.” Sheriff’s deputies said Patrolman Kloka was chasing a speeder southbound on Broadview Road just south of Boston Road in Summit County when his patrol car went out of control, struck a utility pole and came to rest upside down.
Patrolman Kloka was pronounced dead at Akron General Hospital. He resided with his mother in Broadview Heights and was also survived by a sister.
Brian Kloka’s name is inscribed on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Wall, Washington, D.C. panel 39, west wall, line 5.
By P.O. Thomas Armelli, Cleveland Police Dept.
