Over $100K Raised For Injured LI Cop Who Is ‘A Good Family Man’

STONY BROOK, NY — Suffolk County Police Officer Timothy Thrane is still lying in a medically induced coma at Stony Brook University Hospital after being struck by a car in a chain reaction crash caused by an alleged drunken driver early Wednesday morning. His injuries are being monitored minute-to-minute by Intensive Care Unit staff while his family is at his bedside.

But they are not alone.

Members of the law enforcement community and their supporters have rallied behind the young cop and his family and they are also keeping a watchful eye.

Police Benevolent Association Trustee C.J. Hutter, who represents Thrane as his union rep and knows him since he graduated from the academy three years ago, said his family is “holding up.

“As far as his recovery goes they are cautiously optimistic, as they understand that Tim is fighting for his life,” he said. “But they are optimistic that he will get through it.”

Hutter described Thrane as a “great guy” and a “real genuine person.”

Hutter had worked opposite hours on the same patrol car as Thrane, so they would often talk at the shift transfer and they got to know each other pretty well.

Thrane is an “overall good dude, like a good family, man,” he said.

The 35-year-old Thrane has a wife and three small children.

While Thrane has been in the hospital, Hutter has been assigned to liaise with his family, and he and his colleagues in the PBA have been making sure that they have transportation, that they are fed, and have enough rest because they are exhausted.

“We don't want them driving while they're exhausted and fall asleep behind the wheel and have another tragedy,” he said, adding that they are making sure that they are “as comfortable as possible during this time.“

A Fund the First fundraiser has also been organized for Thrane’s family, and his colleagues raised over $100,000 in just about one day.

When New York Police Department officer Austin Glickman was contacted about setting up a fundraiser through his organization, Law Enforcement Officers Weekend, he set a goal of $25,00o, not expecting it to raise a lot of money, but the kitty instead grew quickly.

In three hours it reached the goal.

“And then we're like, ‘Alright, this is going to grow into a much bigger monster than I think any of us had originally planned for, which is a good thing,’” said Glickman, of Long Beach. “It's a good problem to have.”

He said that while Thrane’s medical and work-related expenses will be covered, the family will encounter other expenses while he is in recovery.

Thrane, who is assigned to patrol in the 7th Precinct in Shirley, was struck by an alleged drunk driver while he was "handling traffic control" on William Floyd Parkway in Yaphank at about midnight on Wednesday, police said.

His marked police vehicle was parked had been parked in the roadway blocking traffic due to an earlier investigation at the intersection of William Floyd Parkway and Yaphank Woods Boulevard, police said, adding the Thrane was in the roadway and a 1999 Chevrolet pickup truck traveling southbound on the parkway struck the rear of a GMC Yukon, then his vehicle.

The "force of the impact" caused the Yukon to strike Thrane and he ended up underneath the vehicle, police said.

Dr. James Vosswinkel, the department's medical director and chief of trauma surgery at Stony Brook, said that he is “very optimistic of the outcome that [Thrane] will recover.”

Thrane had a brain bleed that was operated on and is recovering from a skull fracture, so he has a long road to recovery, Glickman said.

But while he is recovering, there will be other costs that will come up such as food, travel, and childcare costs that are not covered by insurance, according to Glickman.

“That's all going to have to come out of the family's pocket,” he added.

NYPD Detective Robert Garland, a Nassau County resident who is chief executive officer of Fund the First, called it “pretty incredible to see that type of support system to come together and help out Tim's family.”

Garland said the fund was set up especially with first responders and military in mind and it is completely vetted with 92% of the funds going to each fundraiser’s beneficiary. He advised that if there are any other fundraisers up in Thrane’s name, they are not endorsed by the Suffolk PBA or Thrane family and are illegitimate.

From what Garland has heard, Thrane is a “fantastic guy,” he said.

“It’s unfortunate for someone just out doing their job for a tragic incident like this to happene because someone made a mistake and got behind the wheel,” he said. “It's sad. It's really sad.”

Garland noted that police are not just protecting those around them in the community, but they are also providing for their families.

“We want to come home at the end of every night, and when something like this happens, it's sad, but at the same time when a fundraiser goes up, it's not about the money that comes in,” he said. “It's about that support system that surrounds our family that really allows for our family to understand that people do care about them."