Garden City Officer Pinned Between Cars During Traffic Stop

The Garden City Police Department reported the following incidents for the week ending Aug. 28.

• Officers assisted the fire department, which responded to a 7th Street apartment building for a smoke condition on Aug. 21. Upon investigation, firefighters determined the smoke was the result of burnt food left on a stove. In addition, officers and firefighters responded to a home for a similar condition caused by burnt food left on a stove.
• Officers assisted the fire department, which responded to a power line fire in the rear yard of a Hayes Street home on Aug. 21. The area was rendered safe by the fire department and PSEG.
• As a result of a traffic stop investigation on Clinton Road on Aug. 21, a 20-year-old man from Brooklyn was charged with driving with a suspended license and excessive speed.
• As a result of a traffic investigation on 7th Street on Aug. 22, officers charged a 33-year-old man from the Bronx for driving with two license suspensions and unsafe lane usage.
• On Aug. 22, officers investigated a report of an unauthorized ATM withdrawal of $200 from a 7th Street bank earlier in the week.
• On Aug. 22, an officer was assigned to Hilton Avenue and 2nd Street for a large tree that fell, blocking all lanes of traffic. The officer placed his vehicle, with emergency lights on, in a position to block southbound traffic on Hilton Avenue at 2nd Street, when a vehicle did not stop and went around the police vehicle. The officer exited his car in an attempt to stop the vehicle. The driver made a U-turn, at which time the officer initiated a car stop on foot. While asking for the driver’s paperwork, the police car jumped out of park, rolled back and struck the Officer, pinning him between the police vehicle and the stopped vehicle. Assisting officers responded to the scene and moved the police vehicle off the officer, who sustained injuries to his right leg, arm and abdominal area. He was transported to Winthrop Hospital by ambulance for treatment and evaluation. The driver of the stopped vehicle, a 68-year-old man from Hempstead, was issued a ticket for going around the police vehicle.
• Officers observed a car on Old Country Road staying in place after the traffic light cycled to green on Aug. 22. Upon investigation, the driver was asleep, his foot on the brake, and the vehicle in the drive position. Officers carefully woke the operator and were able to have the vehicle safely placed into park. The driver, a 51-year-old man from Smithtown, was arrested for DWI and driving with six license suspensions.
• Upon investigation of a man being disruptive and threatening towards children attending the Friday Night Promenade on 7th Street on Aug. 23, Officers arrested a 37-year-old man from Brooklyn for disorderly conduct.
• As a result of a traffic investigation on Meadow Street on Aug. 24, a 29-year-old man from Hempstead was charged with driving with a suspended license and passing a stop sign.
• Officers arrested a 30-year-old man from West Hempstead on 11th Street on Aug. 24 for felony DWI (prior conviction for DWI), aggravated unlicensed operation (suspended license for prior DWI), driving on wrong side of lane markings, defective taillights and consuming alcohol in the vehicle.
• A car was stopped on Franklin Avenue by an officer on Aug. 25 for multiple traffic violations. Upon being stopped, the car suddenly went into reverse, almost striking the police vehicle. The officer again stopped the vehicle and upon investigation, arrested the driver, a 49-year-old woman from Williston Park, for felony DWI (prior conviction for DWI), aggravated unlicensed operation (suspended license for prior DWI), backing unsafely, unsafe lane usage and failed to signal turn.
• As a result of a traffic investigation on Clinton Road on Aug. 25, a 27-year-old woman from Westbury was charged with driving with a suspended license and excessive speed (56 MPH).
• As a result of a traffic investigation on Stewart and Rockaway Avenue on Aug. 25, a 59-year-old man from Jericho was charged with driving with a suspended license and defective headlights.
• Property was reported stolen from a vehicle parked on 4th Street on Aug. 26.
• A vehicle parked in Parking Field 9 was impounded on Aug. 26. It was declared a scofflaw by the Garden City Court due to outstanding unpaid parking tickets.
• A light pole on the Cathedral of Incarnation grounds was found damaged and laying on the ground on Aug. 26.
• Upon investigation of a suspicious vehicle parked on Poplar Street at approximately 11 p.m. on Aug. 26, Garden City officers discovered two occupants, a 49-year-old man and a 41-year-old woman, both from Texas, to be in possession of various packages and forms of THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol), as well as marijuana. In addition, officers discovered a bag containing a gun. Both were placed under arrest and charged with criminal possession of a loaded firearm, criminal possession of a weapon, three counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of marijuana.