California Highway Patrol officer Andrew Camilleri died over Christmas after his police cruiser was struck by a man believed to be under the influence of alcohol and marijuana.
The incident occurred just before 12 a.m. Christmas Day.
According to the Orange County Register, Camilleri was “parked on the right shoulder of Highway 880 near state Highway 92.” A red Cadillac then rammed into the back of the cruiser, fatally injuring Camilleri and slightly injuring officer Jonathan Velasquez, who was also sitting in the cruiser.
The suspect in the accident was “coming home from a party.”
The East Bay Times reports that Camilleri had just graduated from CHP academy in March. He lived in Tracy, California, where his wife, Rosanna, and three children were sleeping when Camilleri was killed.
Camilleri’s mother-in-law said the kids “were going to open their Christmas presents first before Rosanna tells them.”
Gov. Jerry Brown (D) released a statement upon learning of Camilleri’s death, saying, “Anne and I are deeply saddened to learn of the tragic loss of Officer Camilleri. We join his family, friends and the entire California Highway Patrol in mourning his death and honoring his sacrifice.”
CHP Assistant Chief Ernest Sanchez told reporters, “Today is the tragic loss of one our own, who we will consider a hero now and forever.”
AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News, the host of the Breitbart podcast Bullets, and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. Sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.
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