Former NYPD lieutenant John Joseph Martin Jr. dies
John Joseph Martin John Joseph Martin Jr. spent 29 years with the New York City Police Department, supervising law enforcement at Shea Stadium and commanding the Midtown South precinct. The former resident of Cold Spring Harbor and Westbury died in Cranston, Conn., July 29 after battling cancer. He was 81. Credit: Handout
John Joseph Martin Jr., who spent 29 years with the New York City Police Department, at times as a lieutenant supervising law enforcement at Shea Stadium and as a deputy inspector commanding the Midtown South precinct, died July 29 in Madison, Conn., after battling oral cancer. The former Cold Spring Harbor and Westbury resident was 81.
Martin, who divided his time in recent years between Tierra Verde, Fla., and Madison, retired from the NYPD in 1985 as an inspector. He served as police commissioner of Lloyd Harbor for 10 years after retiring from the city force, according to his family.
"He was a man of faith. He was a man of his word. He was a good man," said his daughter, Diane Malichio of Pound Ridge in Westchester County.
Martin was born Sept. 3, 1931, in Floral Park and grew up in Bayside, Queens. He attended Sacred Heart school and graduated from Power Memorial Academy in Manhattan. After graduation, he enrolled in Queens College and worked part time at a local bank, Malichio said.
Martin soon enlisted in the Navy and served during the Korean War from 1950 to 1953. He was stationed in what was known at the time as French Morocco in North Africa, and loved his time in the service, primarily working with troop transport, according to his family.
He married Jane Hendry in 1959. The family, with four daughters, lived in Westbury and was active in the school system and community. Martin and his wife started the gifted program at Carle Place elementary schools, Malichio said.
"He was a very loving father who really devoted his time to his family and community because we were four daughters," Malichio said. "He was at every lacrosse game and other sporting games."
Martin served on the Carle Place School District board for many years, including 10 as its president, according to Malichio.
The family moved from Westbury to Cold Spring Harbor in 1985. Martin continued his volunteering and became an active member at St. Patrick's Church in Huntington, and served many years as a lector, according to his family.
In addition to his wife, who lives in Madison, and Malichio, Martin is survived by daughters Elizabeth Martin-Tienhaara of Holden, Mass., Jennifer Martin-Donovan of Oyster Bay, and Maura Niles of Noank, Conn.; sister Catherine Barrett of Springfield, Mass.; 13 grandchildren and several nieces and nephews.
Burial was Aug. 2 in St. Patrick Cemetery in Huntington.
