LONG ISLAND CRIME BRIEFS

SUFFOLK COUNTY/Homicide squad commander retires

Suffolk County's Chief of Homicide Det. Lt. Gerard Pelkofsky retired Tuesday after serving in the police department for 40 years.

Pelkofsky, 62, had commanded the homicide squad for two years, since a department shake-up in 2010 in which he replaced Det. Lt. Jack Fitzpatrick, who had been commanding officer of the Homicide Squad since 2002.

He oversaw the investigation into one of Long Island's biggest murder cases in recent history: the discovery of remains along Ocean Parkway that police believe are the work of a serial killer or killers.

Pelkofsky entered the academy and was hired 1971. A police spokeswoman said he held several positions in the patrol and detective divisions and was commanding officer in nine different units including the arson and homicide squads.

No replacement has been named yet, the spokeswoman said. -- TANIA LOPEZ

NASSAU COUNTY/Arrest in chase that left officer hurt

The driver who led a Nassau County police officer on a pursuit in November that left that officer seriously injured when her patrol car crashed on the Southern State Parkway has been arrested, police said.

Louie Blanton, 23, of 224 Broadway in Amityville, was arrested by homicide detectives at 5 p.m. Wednesday and charged with assault on a police officer, second-degree assault, second-degree unlawfully fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle, second-degree reckless endangerment, reckless driving and leaving the scene of a serious physical injury incident without reporting it, police said.

Police said Blanton was arrested after an investigation by homicide detectives, the Crimes Against Property Squad, Seventh Precinct detectives and officers -- as well as following tips from the public. The injured officer, whose name was not released, is recovering at home, police said.

Police said only that she is a veteran of nearly 20 years and is married with children. They said she had to be airlifted from the crash scene on Route 110 in Farmingdale and was taken to Nassau University Medical Center, where she was first treated in intensive care.

After the incident a police spokesman said the officer was responding to a call of a suspicious car about 12:20 p.m. Nov. 21 after a witness saw two people replacing license plates on the vehicle in North Massapequa.

As the officer chased the car on Route 110, the suspect hit the brakes -- a maneuver, police believe, done to lose the officer and make her take evasive action.

Not wanting to strike the vehicle from behind, the officer cut to the right and her patrol car hit a guardrail before it bounced back into traffic and was struck by another vehicle, the spokesman said.

-- John Valenti, Gary Dymski and Tania Lopez