The Gazette. Learn something new today and every day.

Boone Iowa police officer dies in weekend car crash while off duty

Nov. 22, 2021 9:59 am

BOONE, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa police officer died in a car crash while he was off duty this weekend.

The Boone Police Department said Mario Gonzalez died Saturday in a crash, but they didn't immediately release any details about the crash.

Gonzalez had been a part-time officer with the department since 2019. Before that, he worked full-time for the department between August 2016 and October 2019. He was also a member of the Iowa Army National Guard.

As of Friday, Iowa’s traffic death count stood at 312, which officials with the state Department of Transportation said outpaced the death toll for that same date in the four previous years.