Nassau police officer Patricia Espinosa's colleagues pay tribute after fatal crash

When one of the guys working at a car wash in Nassau County police officer Patricia Espinosa’s patrol area had a baby, she asked other officers for donations. If Espinosa found a dog that had to be removed from someone’s home, she’d text other officers, asking if they wanted to adopt it. And when a fellow officer in the Fifth Precinct died during the COVID-19 pandemic she helped deliver food to his family.

"Yes, she was a police officer, and yes, Nassau County is very community oriented. But she took it beyond that," said Nassau police officer Victoria Ojeda, president of the Nassau County Police Department Hispanic Society, of which Espinosa was a member. "She really was the best of all of us."

Espinosa, 42, was killed while driving to work early Saturday after an alleged drunk driver in a 2017 Chevrolet Silverado ran a red light and struck her car in St. James. She is survived by her 2-year-old daughter, Mia, her husband, Nassau police officer Francisco Malaga, and two brothers, Nassau police officer Cristian Almeida, and David Almeida, who works for the Philadelphia Police Department.

Visitation has been set for 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 7 p.m to 9 p.m. on Wednesday at St. James Funeral Home, 829 Middle Country Rd. in St. James.

The man driving the Silverado, Matthew Smith, 20, of Hauppauge, visited Jake’s 58 Casino Hotel in Islandia sometime after 4 a.m. on Saturday, according to casino spokesperson Todd Shapiro. But Smith was denied entry, as the casino is closed from 4 to 8 a.m, Shapiro said. Jake’s 58 is located about 5 miles from the site of the crash at Alexander Avenue and Nesconset Highway in St. James.

Smith was being treated at a hospital Sunday for non-life-threatening injuries. He was charged with driving while intoxicated, and has not yet been arraigned.

Malaga, Espinosa’s husband, left for work soon after on Saturday morning when he came across the crash.

"Going to work, [he] saw an accident on the side of the road," Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder told Newsday on Saturday. "He stopped like every other cop does to help, and it turned out to be his own wife. He’s heartbroken."

Friends and colleagues of Espinosa's described her as a force of nature, convincing them to dive into icy waters at the Long Beach polar plunge to raise money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. She served as a field training officer, working with police recruits.

In 2021, she was first on the scene when an NYPD officer living in Nassau called 911 for help with her 2-month-old baby, who later died. Espinosa attempted to save the baby’s life, later keeping in touch with the officer, Rosaliz Alba, and buying the family dinner that night, said Nassau police officer Vanessa Reteguiz, vice president of the Hispanic Society.

"She was not afraid of anything," Reteguiz said. "But she had a soft heart. She would cry with you."

The New York City Police Benevolent Association wrote of Espinosa in a Facebook post at the time: "Since that night, she has stayed by the [Alba] family’s side and supported them in every way possible."

In December 2024, Espinosa responded when a Yorkshire terrier was hit by a car in Elmont and killed. The dog had just given birth to three puppies, which Espinosa kept under her wing at the precinct during her shift that day.

"Most police officers would have taken them to the shelter and they would’ve died there, no doubt," said Wendy Caldwell, founder of A New Beginning Animal Rescue in Plainview.

Espinosa called a handful of local rescues until she found Caldwell, delivering the puppies to a foster home after her shift ended late that evening.

When Espinosa graduated from the police academy in 2017, she joined the Nassau Police Department's Hispanic Society. Earlier this month, she began her third two-year term as the group’s sergeant-at-arms.

Espinosa, Ojeda, the group’s president, and Reteguiz were "the three amigas," Ojeda said.

As one of its many volunteer activities, the Hispanic Society helps organize an annual prom clothing giveaway for local high school students. Hundreds of kids pile into a gym-turned-boutique, filled with short and long dresses, suits, belts and jewelry.

"She was pregnant, and we kept telling her, ‘Just sit at the jewelry counter and help them pick out jewelry,’" Ojeda said of Espinosa. "But no. She’s like the Tasmanian devil. ... But in a good way, in a motivating way. Because even when we doubted that we were going to be able to do something, she was the reassurance that everybody needed."

Espinosa, who emigrated from Ecuador at the age of 21, took on the challenge of learning English as an adult. "She would tell people, I learned one English word every day," Ojeda said.

"What she wanted was a better life than what she had in Ecuador, like every other immigrant that comes here," Ojeda said. "She never really gave herself enough credit. She was the American dream."