A memorial fund established in honor of the Riverside-based California Highway Patrol officer killed by an alleged drunken driver over the weekend is accepting donations to assist his family, it was announced Monday.
The California Association of Highway Patrolmen Credit Union is accepting donations online at www.cahpcu.org/SergeantSteveLiconMemorialFund, or at the following address: Sergeant Steve Licon Memorial Fund, CAHP Credit Union, P.O. Box 276507, Sacramento, CA 95827-6507.
“Please keep Sgt. Licon’s family, friends and colleagues in your thoughts and prayers as we mourn this heartbreaking loss,” according to a CAHP statement. “One hundred percent of all donations received will go directly to Sergeant Licon’s wife and two children.”
The CHP held a bell-tolling ceremony at its Sacramento headquarters Monday in a salute to the lawman, and flags across the state were ordered to half-staff by the governor in recognition of his death.
Licon, 53, of Perris, was conducting traffic enforcement on his CHP motorcycle about 4:25 p.m. Saturday when he was fatally struck, allegedly by 36-year-old Michael Joseph Callahan, on southbound Interstate 15, about 1.5 miles north of Nichols Road in Lake Elsinore, according to the CHP.
Moments before, Licon had stopped the driver of a Chrysler sedan for an unspecified traffic violation, and he was on the shoulder of the freeway when Callahan approached from behind, allegedly plowing into the lawmen, his bike and the Chrysler, investigators said.
The gravely injured victim, who had served 28 years with the Highway Patrol, was taken to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar, where he died less than an hour later.
Callahan, who was treated for minor injuries, was booked into the Robert Presley Jail in Riverside on suspicion of second-degree murder and driving under the influence. He’s being held without bail.
The family of four in the Chrysler was not hurt.
Licon, who had previously held positions in the Baldwin Park and Santa Ana CHP offices, is survived by his wife, Ann, daughter Marissa and stepdaughter Kelly. He had been assigned to the Riverside CHP office since 2013, according to the agency.
The Riverside County District Attorney’s Office is expected to file a criminal complaint against Callahan Tuesday afternoon or Wednesday morning. The earliest he would appear in court is Wednesday afternoon.
>> Want to read more stories like this? Get our Free Daily Newsletters Here!