NYSP Trooper James R. Gohery was killed in a motorcycle crash on December 30, 1943, at the age of 29, in the village of Freeport.
Trooper Gohery was assigned to relay evidence to the Wantagh Station. As he traveled through the village of Freeport, the evidence allegedly slipped from his grasp. In an attempt to recover the evidence, he lost control of his motorcycle, brushed against a tree and fell, striking his head.
He was stationed at the Bethpage and Wantagh Stations of Troop L.