Officer Shot in Traffic Stop Released From Hospital

The Suffolk County police officer who was shot in the neck and hip during a traffic stop last week was released from the hospital Sunday.

Officer Mark Collins, once named Officer of the Year, was placed in a medically induced coma after the shooting Wednesday. On Sunday, declared fit to return home, the 12-year Suffolk police veteran gave a thumbs up as he shook hands with a fellow officer. He didn't talk to reporters.

A 22-year-old man has been arrested on charges including aggravated attempted murder in the shooting. Sheldon Leftenant was found hiding in a shed in a neighboring yard not long after the violence.

Collins, who was named the department's Officer of the Year in 2008, was shot in the neck and hip on Mercer Court, just off Jericho Turnpike, in Huntington Station, during a chase that stemmed from a traffic stop, according to authorities.

Collins and two other officers were attempting to stop a car that was speeding and weaving in and out of traffic, authorities said. There were four people in the vehicle and one person, allegedly Leftenant, ran from the car, police say.

Collins, who was in plain clothes and driving an unmarked police car, got out of his vehicle and chased after the man. Leftenant allegedly opened fire and ran off, eluding authorities for some time before he was found in the shed.

A gun was recovered from the shed and Leftenant was arrested. At his arraignment, Leftenant denied any involvement.

Collins was flown to Stony Brook University Hospital early Wednesday in serious condition and put in a medically induced coma in the intensive care unit. He was out of the coma by evening and said to be conscious and responsive, Suffolk police said.

Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota said he would seek the maximum penalty of 40 years to life for Leftenant should he be convicted. Leftenant, who was shot in a drive-by last August but didn't cooperate with police on the matter, told authorities when he was arrested Wednesday that he ran because he didn't want to be caught with the gun, according to Spota.

Spota alleged that Leftenant is a member of a "vicious gang called The Tip Top Boyz." In 2012, Leftenant pleaded guilty to criminal facilitation and was sentenced to a year in jail and five years probation.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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