Grand Chute Police Department mourns former officer killed in line of duty in Texas

A group of 18 current and former officers from the Grand Chute Police Department will travel to Texas this week to attend the funeral of a former Grand Chute police officer who was killed in the line of duty with the Carrollton, Texas, police department.

Steve Nothem, 36, died Oct. 18 after his squad car was hit by a vehicle while he was responding to an arrest in the westbound lanes of 1905 E. President George Bush Turnpike near the Dallas area. The crash occurred at 10:24 p.m., just as Nothem had arrived to assist another officer with an arrest of someone who had been driving under the influence on the highway, according to the Carrollton Police Department.

Nothem was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. The 82-year-old driver of the vehicle that struck him died at the scene.

Nothem was an officer with the Grand Chute Police Department for four years before he moved to Texas in 2020.

"Steve was very well-liked. A very personable individual, just a tremendous heart, a very compassionate person, respectful, kind — he was just a real nice person to be around." Grand Chute Police Chief Greg Peterson said. "One of the things I'll always remember is I never had an interaction with Steve where he didn't have a big smile on his face."

Nothem leaves behind his wife, a 13-year-old son, twin 6-year-old sons and a 1-year-old daughter, according to the Carrollton Police Department.

A GiveSendGo fundraiser has been set up for Nothem's family. As of noon Monday, it had raised over $25,000.

According to his obituary, Nothem served eight years in the U.S. Marine Corps. During that time, while serving at Camp Pendleton, California, he met and married his wife. After Nothem was discharged, he attended school in Utah and received a degree in criminal justice. He began his career in law enforcement at the Grand Chute Police Department.

Nothem grew up in the Kiel area and still has family there, Peterson said.

The Carrollton Police Department hosted a candlelight vigil for Nothem Sunday night. According to the department's Facebook page, attendees were encouraged to dress in Disney, Marvel and Captain America attire, at the Nothem family's request.

Contact Kelli Arseneau at (920) 213-3721 or karseneau@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @ArseneauKelli.

This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Former Grand Chute police officer dies in the line of duty in Texas