Photo Courtesy: WTSP
After 29 weeks of training, Officer Matias Ferreira, 28, graduated today from the Suffolk County Police Academy as its first fully active-duty double-amputee police officer.
He credited his wife, Tiffany; his daughter, Tianna; and family and friends with helping him reach the finish line. He finished as the class president as well as the class speaker.
Ferreira grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, and then joined the Marines. In 2011, while serving in Afghanistan, he stepped on an improvised explosive device.
He lost both legs below the knees.
Ferreira is believed to be the first double-amputee police officer in the United States.
