New Jersey State Police, New Jersey
End of Watch Monday, June 11, 1962
Add to My HeroesJoseph Paul DeFrino
Trooper Joseph DeFrino, Trooper Milan Simcak, and Trooper Arthur Abagnale were killed in an automobile accident on the New Jersey Turnpike near the Passaic River Bridge in Kearny.
The troopers were accompanying a dump truck, with red lights flashing and traveling at 15- 20 miles an hour when a bus rounded a curve, hit a car, and then rolled onto the cruiser and pushed it into the truck. The driver of the bus stated that his brakes failed. The troopers were pronounced dead at the scene.
Trooper DeFrino was a United States Air Force veteran and had served with the New Jersey State Police for three years. He was survived by his parents, two sisters, and fiancee.
Bio
- Age 25
- Tour 3 years
- Badge 1605
- Military Veteran
Incident Details
- Cause Automobile crash
Most Recent Reflection
View all 13 ReflectionsOn this 58th year of yours and your partners untimely departure, I would like to say thank you for your sacrifice and let you know that time will never erase your memory and heroism.
Detective Cpl/3 Steven Rizzo (Retired)
Delaware State Police
June 11, 2020
Recent LODD Deaths
Police Officer Kyle Hicks
Corpus Christi Police Department, TX
EOW: April 24, 2024
Investigator John Hampton Coddou, III
Harris County Sheriff's Office, TX
EOW: April 23, 2024
Police Officer Jordan Wingate
Oakland Police Department, CA
EOW: April 20, 2024
Police Officer Luis M. Huesca
Chicago Police Department, IL
EOW: April 21, 2024
Deputy Sheriff Tobin Bolter
Ada County Sheriff's Office, ID
EOW: April 21, 2024
Deputy Sheriff Alfredo "Freddy" Flores
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, CA
EOW: April 20, 2024
Investigator Brian Herbert
Osage Nation Police Department, TR
EOW: April 17, 2024
Deputy Sheriff Fred Fislar
Hendricks County Sheriff's Office, IN
EOW: April 16, 2024
Police Officer Michael E. Jensen
Syracuse Police Department, NY
EOW: April 14, 2024