Slain Cop's Widow States Case Against Parole for Killer
By TOMMY HALLISSEY
The widow of a Police Officer who was murdered by an ex-convict out on parole revisited old wounds and revealed bitter memories to the State Parole Board Aug. 14 to prevent the release of her husband's killer.

P.O. CECIL F. SLEDGE

Linda Sledge told the parole board about what it was like to lose her husband, NYPD officer Cecil Sledge, when their two children were babies. "You go over the horror," she said. "You open up the scars and out comes the hurt. We live each and every day without him because of that criminal."

A Brutal Killing Compounded

On Jan. 28, 1980, Officer Sledge, 35, stopped Salvatore "Crazy Sal" DeSarno on suspicion of robbery. Mr. DeSarno shot the 12-year veteran, who was patrolling the 69th Precinct in Canarsie, Brooklyn without a partner, four times at close range. He then ran over the cop with his car and dragged the body for half a mile.

Patrolmen's Benevolent Association President Patrick J. Lynch formally requested that the State Division of Parole deny Mr. DeSarno his freedom. "This hardened criminal killed a Police Officer the last time he was released on parole," he said. "Why would you trust him to be released again? Anyway, no cop-killer should ever get the chance to walk the streets a free person."

PATRICK J. LYNCH: 'No cop-killer should be freed.'

Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly last month wrote a letter to the Chairman of the Board of Parole. "I am writing to oppose [Mr. DeSarno's] release in the strongest possible terms," he stated to George B. Alexander of the Division of Parole. He noted that Mr. DeSarno was on parole the night he killed Mr. Sledge. "His legacy of violence has continued throughout his incarceration," the letter stated. "Since 1989, DeSarno has been cited for 19 infractions in prison.

He continued, "I firmly believe that releasing someone with Salvatore DeSarno's violent criminal history would pose a significant risk to both the general public and law enforcement personnel."

Ms. Sledge has made a trip to the Parole Board every two years since Mr. DeSarno has been eligible for release. "I try to express that even though it's been 28 years it hasn't changed anything," she said during an Aug. 20 phone interview. "I try to explain all the bittersweet moments because he wasn't there."

The brutal murder of Police Officer Sledge, who was highly decorated, resulted in the suspension of an experiment in the NYPD of one-officer patrol cars under then-Police Commissioner Robert J. McGuire, the PBA noted. Ms. Sledge said she is against one-man patrol cars but did not need to lobby the city. "They knew it automatically," she said. "They knew it wasn't good policy."

Ms. Sledge will find out in two weeks whether Mr. DeSarno will be set free.