# Topsfield patrolman injured one year ago hopes for return



## stm4710 (Jul 6, 2004)

Topsfield patrolman injured one year ago hopes for return







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By Jill Harmacinski 
_Staff writer

_
writePage("TOPSFIELD - For Shawn Frost, the nightmare was always the same: He is standing on Route 1 in his police uniform when he is struck by a car and thrown 25 feet into the air.

"I dreamed about it over and over again for the first four or five months," he says. "The same dream about getting hit and the ambulance and going to the hospital."

These days, his dreams are all about returning to work.

"That's my goal, to get back," Frost says. "I would be so happy if I could get back to work and put all this behind me."

Tomorrow, a year will have passed since the Topsfield patrolman was critically injured after being struck by an 89-year-old driver while working a bridge repair detail on Route 1. Frost, then a newlywed, lay on the side of the road with a head injury, a broken pelvis, a shattered right leg and a mangled knee.

After 12 surgeries and hundreds of hours of physical therapy, Frost, 34, still doesn't know if he'll be able to return, although he remains hopeful.

"The surgeon said at the beginning it was a 50-50 shot," Frost says.

Last March 28, police say, Carlton Roffey plowed into Frost while he was standing in the southbound lane near the Topsfield Fairgrounds. Seemingly unaware of the crash, the Danvers resident kept driving for another mile, dragging five bright orange traffic cones under his 1986 Oldsmobile.

An attorney for Roffey, who was charged with leaving the scene of a personal-injury accident and failure to drive in marked lanes, claims the elderly man suffered a stroke while driving. However, police speculate that Roffey was filling a pipe while driving - an action that distracted him.

To help stay connected these days, Frost meets weekly with Topsfield police Chief Daniel O'Shea and has regular coffee calls with fellow patrolmen.

"He wants to come back to work in the worst way. He wants to get back on his career path," says O'Shea. "If anybody can do it, he's the guy that can do it."

Last week, Frost testified in a trial for a man he charged with drunken driving before he was injured.

"I miss the guys. I miss the job," he says. "It's really what I look forward to every day."

Frost walks on his own again, thanks to a brace on his right leg. He continues a rigorous physical therapy schedule and on days when he doesn't have an appointment, he works out at the gym, hoping to reverse nerve damage in that limb.

In six months, he'll meet with his surgeon in Boston again to chart his progress. Ultimately, Frost will have to undergo a medical exam with an independent physician to determine if he can return to work.

"And that doctor will determine not what Shawn or what Dan O'Shea wants," O'Shea explains, "but the best thing for everybody concerned."

This spring, as the weather improves, Frost is spending some time outdoors with 2 1/2-year-old Fargo, his mixed-breed dog with boundless energy. In June, more excitement is expected for Frost and his wife, Laura, who are expecting their first child.

Looking back, Frost admits the months behind him have been frustrating, but also fulfilling. He is grateful for the love and support from his family, his in-laws and especially his wife. Local residents continually offered help and well wishes. Frost recently stowed away in his attic a cardboard box full of cards from schoolchildren.

But he says a major disappointment was that Roffey, the 89-year-old driver, did not accept responsibility for the accident.

"That's really been the hardest thing," he says. "I haven't heard anything from him ... And I relive that accident every day in my head."

A hearing to determine if Roffey is competent to stand trial is scheduled for May 18.

Either way, Frost contends that accident should never have happened.

"There's no way he should have been behind the wheel on March 28," Frost says.

He says we can all learn a lesson from this. Look around: Do you have a parent, grandparent, relative or neighbor too impaired to drive? Are you nervous that taking their license will take away their independence?

Frost asks that people think of the alternative.

"This all could have been prevented," he says.

_Staff writer Jill Harmacinski can be reached at (978-338-2652) or by email at [email protected]._

",false,true);TOPSFIELD - For Shawn Frost, the nightmare was always the same: He is standing on Route 1 in his police uniform when he is struck by a car and thrown 25 feet into the air.

"I dreamed about it over and over again for the first four or five months," he says. "The same dream about getting hit and the ambulance and going to the hospital."

These days, his dreams are all about returning to work.

"That's my goal, to get back," Frost says. "I would be so happy if I could get back to work and put all this behind me."

Tomorrow, a year will have passed since the Topsfield patrolman was critically injured after being struck by an 89-year-old driver while working a bridge repair detail on Route 1. Frost, then a newlywed, lay on the side of the road with a head injury, a broken pelvis, a shattered right leg and a mangled knee.

After 12 surgeries and hundreds of hours of physical therapy, Frost, 34, still doesn't know if he'll be able to return, although he remains hopeful.

"The surgeon said at the beginning it was a 50-50 shot," Frost says.

Last March 28, police say, Carlton Roffey plowed into Frost while he was standing in the southbound lane near the Topsfield Fairgrounds. Seemingly unaware of the crash, the Danvers resident kept driving for another mile, dragging five bright orange traffic cones under his 1986 Oldsmobile.

An attorney for Roffey, who was charged with leaving the scene of a personal-injury accident and failure to drive in marked lanes, claims the elderly man suffered a stroke while driving. However, police speculate that Roffey was filling a pipe while driving - an action that distracted him.

To help stay connected these days, Frost meets weekly with Topsfield police Chief Daniel O'Shea and has regular coffee calls with fellow patrolmen.

"He wants to come back to work in the worst way. He wants to get back on his career path," says O'Shea. "If anybody can do it, he's the guy that can do it."

Last week, Frost testified in a trial for a man he charged with drunken driving before he was injured.

"I miss the guys. I miss the job," he says. "It's really what I look forward to every day."

Frost walks on his own again, thanks to a brace on his right leg. He continues a rigorous physical therapy schedule and on days when he doesn't have an appointment, he works out at the gym, hoping to reverse nerve damage in that limb.

In six months, he'll meet with his surgeon in Boston again to chart his progress. Ultimately, Frost will have to undergo a medical exam with an independent physician to determine if he can return to work.

"And that doctor will determine not what Shawn or what Dan O'Shea wants," O'Shea explains, "but the best thing for everybody concerned."

This spring, as the weather improves, Frost is spending some time outdoors with 2 1/2-year-old Fargo, his mixed-breed dog with boundless energy. In June, more excitement is expected for Frost and his wife, Laura, who are expecting their first child.

Looking back, Frost admits the months behind him have been frustrating, but also fulfilling. He is grateful for the love and support from his family, his in-laws and especially his wife. Local residents continually offered help and well wishes. Frost recently stowed away in his attic a cardboard box full of cards from schoolchildren.

But he says a major disappointment was that Roffey, the 89-year-old driver, did not accept responsibility for the accident.

"That's really been the hardest thing," he says. "I haven't heard anything from him ... And I relive that accident every day in my head."

A hearing to determine if Roffey is competent to stand trial is scheduled for May 18.

Either way, Frost contends that accident should never have happened.

"There's no way he should have been behind the wheel on March 28," Frost says.

He says we can all learn a lesson from this. Look around: Do you have a parent, grandparent, relative or neighbor too impaired to drive? Are you nervous that taking their license will take away their independence?

Frost asks that people think of the alternative.

"This all could have been prevented," he says.

_Staff writer Jill Harmacinski can be reached at (978-338-2652) or by email at [email protected]._


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## Guest (Mar 28, 2006)

It is great to see he is still determined.


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## SPINMASS (Jan 30, 2004)

Good luck to him on his return to duty.


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## Tango (Nov 28, 2004)

Detail season is upon us...a reminder for us all to be careful


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