Cody Fisher and the crash scene.

By Michael Mashburn From Daily Voice

A Long Island man who drove high and drunk and crashed into a Suffolk police officer’s patrol car, nearly killing him, will spend a decade behind bars.

Cody Fisher, 29, of Brentwood, was sentenced Tuesday, Oct. 21, in Suffolk County Court after pleading guilty to assaulting a police officer and several related charge

The crash happened just before 6 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 5. Suffolk County Police Officer Brendon Gallagher was conducting a traffic stop on the Long Island Expressway between exits 58 and 57 when Fisher sped past in a 2021 Ford Mustang.

When Gallagher tried to pull him over, Fisher fled at speeds topping 100 mph, prosecutors said. As Gallagher pulled alongside the vehicle, Fisher struck the officer’s patrol car, causing it to flip and smash into a tree.

Gallagher had to be extricated and was airlifted to Stony Brook University Hospital with a torn aorta and severe abdominal injuries that required surgery.

Fisher’s Mustang traveled several hundred feet before stopping. When officers reached him, they reported his eyes were glassy, his speech slurred, and the odor of burnt cannabis strong.

He was arrested at the scene and later refused a blood test. A court-ordered analysis revealed a blood alcohol content of .06 percent along with active marijuana in his system.

Fisher pleaded guilty to assault on a police officer, assault in the second degree, vehicular assault, unlawful fleeing, driving while impaired by the combined influence of alcohol and drugs, and unlicensed operation.

“When someone makes the choice to operate a vehicle while under the influence of both alcohol and drugs, then actively flees from law enforcement at excessive speeds, they have already demonstrated a profound disregard for human life,” said Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney. “The fact that this officer survived is nothing short of a miracle.”