Help Sought in Identifying Driver Who Struck Officer in Hit-and-Run

Family and colleagues of Montebello Police Officer Michael Galvez are appealing to the public for help in identifying the person responsible for the off-duty hit-and-run accident that left him paralyzed at the chest.

Galvez, 30, of Walnut, was in stable condition at St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood, where he was taken a week ago after the accident, hospital officials said Friday.

Witnesses told authorities that the officer, who was taking his daily jog about 7:20 p.m. on April 1, entered the intersection of Grand Avenue and Amar Road in Walnut when a car struck him, said Lt. Govan Yee of the Montebello Police Department.

The car, heading south on Grand, was traveling at 40 mph to 50 mph. It threw Galvez about 50 feet, witnesses told police. The driver fled, Yee said.

At a news conference at the hospital, Galvez’s wife, Adrianna, said that if the person responsible for the accident “wanted to do the right thing, he would’ve stopped and helped Michael.”

Her husband, an eight-year veteran of the police force and the father of a 4-year-old son, sustained fractures in his legs and left arm. Doctors are not sure if the paralysis is permanent.

Dr. Clarence Hyshaw, a neurological surgeon at St. Francis, said Galvez is still in a state of spinal shock. If some of his reflexes return, doctors will have an idea of the long-term prognosis, Hyshaw said. Off-duty officers, family and friends handed out fliers at the intersection on Thursday evening.

Police said the car that struck Galvez is a dark four-door Nissan Sentra or Altima with tinted windows. No description of the driver was available.

The Sheriff’s Department is asking anyone with information on the hit-and-run to call the Walnut station at (909) 595-2264.