The Val Johnson Patrol Car Incident

On August 27, 1979, Deputy Sheriff Val Johnson of Marshall County, Minnesota encountered a bright light on a lonely stretch of highway. The impact left him unconscious and his patrol car damaged in ways that have never been adequately explained. The car remains on display as evidence.

The Officer

Val Johnson:

• Deputy Sheriff
• Marshall County
• Experienced officer
• No history of issues
• Credible witness

The Night

August 27, 1979:

• Around 1:40 AM
• Routine patrol
• State Highway 220
• Near Stephen, Minnesota
• Clear conditions

The Light

Johnson observed:

• Bright light ahead
• Very intense
• Appeared suddenly
• Rapidly approached
• Collision imminent

The Impact

He experienced:

• Light engulfed car
• Brilliant flash
• Lost consciousness
• Car in ditch
• 39 minutes missing

The Damage

Patrol car showed:

• Windshield cracked
• Two antennas bent back
• Headlight broken
• Hood dented
• Clock stopped

The Windshield

Damage pattern:

• Cracked from inside out
• Not outside in
• Very unusual pattern
• Expert analysis confirmed
• Unexplained force

The Antennas

Both spring-loaded antennas:

• Bent backward
• At 90-degree angles
• Should bounce back
• Permanent deformation
• Impossible normally

Time Anomaly

Dashboard clock:

• Stopped exactly
• 14 minutes slow
• Wristwatch identical
• Both affected
• Missing time confirmed

Physical Effects on Johnson

The officer suffered:

• Eye damage
• Like welder’s flash burns
• Temporary blindness
• Required treatment
• Genuine injuries

Medical Documentation

Doctors confirmed:

• Real eye injury
• Consistent with intense light
• Not self-inflicted
• Authentic damage
• Professional treatment

The Investigation

Multiple authorities:

• Examined crash scene
• Analyzed vehicle damage
• Assessed officer’s condition
• Found genuine
• No hoax evidence

Scientific Analysis

Ford Motor Company:

• Examined the car
• Honeywell engineers too
• No conventional explanation
• Damage unexplainable
• Authentic event

The Missing 39 Minutes

Time gap:

• Completely unaccounted
• No memory
• Clock evidence supports
• Watch evidence supports
• Classic UFO pattern

The Car Today

The patrol car:

• Preserved intact
• On display at museum
• Marshall County Historical
• Still shows damage
• Physical evidence

Johnson’s Account

He maintained:

• Something real happened
• Not imagined
• Physical evidence proves it
• Never changed story
• Consistent for decades

Significance

The incident is significant for:

• Physical evidence preserved
• Medical documentation
• Time displacement
• Professional witness
• Museum artifact

Legacy

The Val Johnson incident remains one of the best-documented physical UFO encounters. The preserved patrol car with its inexplicable damage stands as tangible evidence of something truly unusual.