TOMS RIVER-On January 4th, The New Jersey State Police notified the Toms River Police Department of a serious crash involving one of their own officers.

Twenty eight year old Officer Brett Hansen was traveling on the Garden State Parkway in his personal vehicle near mile marker 90. He was off duty at the time his vehicle collided with a large truck.

Officer Hansen, who has been assigned to the patrol division since being hired in August 2015, sustained life threatening injuries.

Before joining the Toms River Police Department, Hansen worked for the Camden County.
The town police departments came together to show their support for Hansen and his family by playing a hockey game at Winding River Skating Center in Toms River on Saturday, February 18th.

Hansen’s injuries were severe. He had serious facial damage, losing his left eye and he may never see again out of his right eye. Hansen’s mother said he remains in a coma and it is not known yet how badly his brain has suffered damage.

His recovery could take years, but on May 17th, his benefits run out as he is forced to go on disability. Being a young officer, disability payments will be minimal and the family has set up a Go Fund Me account.

To date, $32,000 has been raised by the Ocean County and New Jersey police community at large.

While the Toms River Police won the hockey game, it was a bigger win for Team Hansen and the great Toms River region who came to support a young man who dreamed of one day becoming a police officer.

Toms river pba hosts hockey game to support injured officer

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