Nassau County Police Department, New York
End of Watch: Saturday, February 5, 2011
Age: 44
Tour of Duty: 22 years
Badge Number: 2852
Cause of Death: Automobile crash
Date of Incident: February 4, 2011
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Pleaded guilty to reckless driving
Police Officer Michael Califano was killed when his patrol car was struck by a truck as he conducted a vehicle stop.
Officer Califano pulled over a box truck on the Long Island Expressway near exit 39 for insufficient lighting. As Officer Califano was sitting in his patrol car writing a summons, it was struck by a flatbed tow truck. The force of the impact pushed the patrol car under the box truck and knocked the box truck into traffic. The flatbed truck ended up on top of the police car. It took rescuers thirty minutes to cut through the roof of the patrol car and remove the officer.
Officer Califano was taken to the Nassau University Medical Center where he died from his injuries.
The driver of the flatbed truck was arrested and charged with one count of criminally negligent homicide, three counts of assault, and failure to move over for an emergency vehicle. In February 2013 the subject pleaded guilty to reckless driving.
Officer Califano had served with the Nassau County Police Department for 12 years and was assigned to the Highway Patrol. Before that, he worked for the Nassau Corrections Division for 10 years.
He is survived by his wife and three children.
In August 2011, Glen Cove Road Bridge over Long Island Expressway was renamed Police Officer Michael J. Califano Memorial Bridge, near the intersection where the incident occurred.