Suffolk County Police Department, New York
End of Watch: Sunday, August 6, 1995
Age: 31
Tour of Duty: 9 years
Badge Number: 292
Cause of Death: Vehicular assault
Date of Incident: July 31, 1995
Weapon Used: Automobile
Suspect Info: Sentenced to life
Sergeant Timothy Henck died from injuries he received one week earlier when a robbery suspect rammed his cruiser.
On July 31, 1995, Sergeant Henck was working a 10 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. tour in the Fifth Precinct. At approximately 12:45 a.m., a police officer observed a subject fleeing the scene of a burglary at a local store in Bohemia. The subject fled in a van, and a motor vehicle pursuit ensued.
Sergeant Henck was supervising the pursuit as it went westbound on the Long Island Expressway towards Huntington. Sergeant Henck, considering the safety of other officers and motorists, attempted to stop the van. The subject rammed his vehicle numerous times, sending it into an embankment on the Expressway near exit 52. Sergeant Henck was pinned in his patrol vehicle. When he was removed from the vehicle, officers performed CPR, and he was then airlifted to Stony Brook University Hospital. On August 6, 1995, Sergeant Henck succumbed to his injuries.
The 37-year-old subject, a paroled burglar, was convicted of second-degree murder, reckless endangerment, and burglary and sentenced to 26 years to life.
Sergeant Henck had served with the Suffolk County Police Department for nine years. He is survived by his wife, daughter, and mother.