Posted September 15, 2011
Lisha Kill DARE Officer Injured During Suspect Chase
Four Colonie police officers, including Lisha Kill DARE Officer Patrick Germaine, were injured while chasing down a suspect Wednesday morning. Germaine was not working at the school at the time, and was on normal police duty.
The four were chasing a 22-year-old man, who threatened another man with a starter’s pistol, then led cops on a high-speed chase that ended when the suspect’s car crashed on Central Avenue, police said. The four officers were injured during the chase, which began at 10:23 a.m. outside 39 Omega Terrace, and ended after the suspect slammed into a retaining wall at 609 Central Ave.
The incident got its start at 39 Omega Terrace, where police said the suspect went to the home to retrieve music equipment. There is a recording and music video studio at the home, and the suspect and the homeowner had been in business together, police said.
After the victim would not let the suspect into the home, the suspect allegedly threatened the man with a handgun. The victim called police, who arrived as the suspect was leaving in a 2003 Honda Civic.
The suspect allegedly refused to pull over and led police on a chase into Albany. After striking two marked police cars on Central Avenue, the suspect crashed into a guard rail at 609 Central Ave., jumped over a retaining wall and fled on foot, police said. The suspect was caught in front of 86 Hunter St.
The suspect and the four officers suffered minor injuries after leaping over the wall, which drops off 4 to 6 feet from Central Avenue onto Colby Street. Officer Germaine injured his ankle in the fall. The other three officers injured were Patrolman Robert Laliberte, Patrolman Eric Gansle, and Patrolman David Mink. They were all transported to Albany Medical Center for treatment of their injuries.
Police said a silver starter’s pistol that the suspect used to threaten the Colonie man was found in the back seat of the suspect’s car.
South Colonie Schools, working in partnership with the Colonie Police Department, has been an active participant in the D.A.R.E. program for many years. D.A.R.E. stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education and much more! D.A.R.E. is a highly acclaimed program that gives middle school kids the skills they need to avoid involvement in drugs, gangs, and violence. D.A.R.E. was founded in 1983 in Los Angeles and has proven so successful that it is now being implemented in 75 percent of the nation's school districts and in more than 43 countries around the world. D.A.R.E. is a police officer-led series of classroom lessons that teaches children how to resist peer pressure and live productive drug and violence-free lives. Lessons focus on providing students with accurate information about alcohol and drugs, teaching students decision-making skills, showing students how to resist peer pressure and giving students ideas for alternatives to drug use and violence.