OHP trooper remembered five years after being killed by texting driver

Friday marks five years since an Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper was killed in the line of duty by someone texting and driving.

In 2015, Troopers Nicholas Dees and Keith Burch were investigating a semi crash in Shawnee when a man texting and driving ran into both of them, killing Dees and severely injuring Burch.

Dees was 30 years old. He left behind a wife and two children.

His mother, Shelley Russell of Durant, uses this day to remind everyone of the dangers of distracted driving.

If I can turn this tragedy into a positive and save lives, then Nicholas and I have done our job. People need to realize there's no life worth a text. There's no life worth picking that phone up. Put the phones down," Russell said.

Dees, a Southeastern graduate, now has a $5,000 scholarship by the Chata Foundation given to a student pursuing a career in law enforcement.