Suffolk County Police have arrested a Brentwood man for driving while ability impaired by drugs and reckless driving following a motor vehicle crash that critically injured a police officer on Sunday, January 5.
Highway Patrol Officer Brendon Gallagher was conducting a traffic stop on westbound Long Island Expressway, near exit 55, when the operator of a 2021 Ford Mustang sped past the officer. Officer Gallagher, who is a member of the recently created Street Takeover Task Force, activated lights and sirens in an attempt to pull the driver over, when the operator of the Mustang lost control of the vehicle and sideswiped the police vehicle. The patrol unit left the roadway and overturned at approximately 6:10 p.m.
The Mustang also went off the road and struck a light post. The operator of the vehicle, Cody Fisher, was apprehended by an off-duty Nassau County Police Officer who was passing at the time of the incident.
Gallagher was taken via police helicopter to Stony Brook University Hospital in critical condition. Fisher, 29, of Brentwood, was transported to South Shore University Hospital in Bay Shore, for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. He was released and charged with Driving While Ability Impaired by Drugs, Assault 2nd Degree, Unlawful Fleeing a Police Officer in a Motor Vehicle 2nd Degree and Reckless Driving. He is being arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip on January 6.
A criminal charge is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.