5/15/17 – 5:33 A.M.

The first African-American Ohio State Patrol trooper passed away recently at the age of 85. Louis Dale Sharp graduated from the Patrol Academy in 1955 and his first assignment was to the Findlay patrol post. A post on the Ohio State Patrol’s Facebook page says at the time, Sharp was the only minority member out of 700 employees.

According to the post, Sharp would later become the mayor of Urbancrest, Ohio. He also served on several charitable boards and civic associations.

Sharp was recently inducted into the Ohio Civil Rights Hall of Fame.