09/16/2026
We Remember and Honor Long Beach Police Officer Robert R. Birdsall, End of Watch (EOW) September 16, 1975, Gunfire
Shortly before 11 p.m. on September 15, 1975, Dorothy M. Clements, 41, waited at Alameda and Anaheim Streets in Long Beach for a bus to arrive and take her to work at a convalescent hospital. Before a bus reached her stop, a man drove up, pointed a gun at her, and demanded she get in his car. Fearing for her life, she complied, and the man drove her on an erratic course toward the lightly populated oil fields of Signal Hill.
At 23rd Street and Orange Avenue, the car ran out of gas, and the man ordered Dorothy to get out and help him push it. When they got out, she attempted to run. The man grabbed her, but Dorothy escaped his grasp and ran into the darkness. She believed he fired a shot at her but did not look back as she continued to flee until she reached a liquor store two blocks away and called Long Beach police.
Officers Robert R. Birdsall and his partner, Wilbur Poston, arrived. She directed them to the suspect's stranded vehicle. The area around the car contained businesses, a school, a few houses, and railroad tracks. The two officers decided to split up to cover more ground. A few minutes later, Officer Poston heard an exchange of gunshots. He ran toward the sound of the gunfire and found his partner on the ground with a gunshot wound to his chest.
An intense manhunt followed, involving officers from Long Beach and Seal Beach, assisted by two police helicopters. The suspect, 25-year-old Fred Harvey, was found hiding between two industrial buildings at 2:40 a.m. Harvey surrendered without a fight, and officers recovered a .38 caliber revolver nearby. Officer Birdsall died in surgery at St. Mary's Medical Center about an hour and a half before the suspect's arrest.
Robert Birdsall, 40, joined the Long Beach Police Department in 1962. In 1963, the state honored him for capturing an escaped convict from Chino Prison. In 1972, the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department commended him for arresting an armed robbery suspect. In 1973, he received the department's Class A Meritorious Award for saving unconscious people from a burning building. Long Beach Deputy Chief Willis Platt described him as a fearless and highly respected officer.
Birdsall lived in Brea with his wife, Amelia. She and their four children: Robert R. Jr., 20; Richard R., 19; Diana L., 17; and Albert M., 14, survived him.
In May 1976, a jury convicted Fred Harvey of murder and recommended the death penalty. But in January 1978, an appeals court reduced this sentence to life in prison.
Two more Long Beach Police Officers, Franke Lewis (EOW December 13, 1975) and Gary Elkins (EOW January 1, 1976), were shot to death only months after Officer Birdsall. On January 30, 1976, a charity event was held at the Long Beach Arena to benefit the Long Beach Police Officers' Memorial Fund. Frank Sinatra and Milton Berle were among the artists who donated their time to raise money.
Sources: Long Beach Press-Telegram, Los Angeles Times, Findagrave, Long Beach PD
