Michigan State Trooper Succumbs to Injuries

A Michigan State Police trooper and married father of four died Friday after he was knocked off his motorcycle in Oakland County and dragged for several miles.

More than 11 hours after the crash, State Police announced that the 38-year-old trooper, Chad Wolf, had died of his injuries. He had previously been hospitalized in critical condition.

"It is with very heavy hearts that we confirm the death of one of our own, Trooper Chad Wolf," Col. Kriste Kibbey Etue, state police director, said in a news release. "Our troopers know the dangers they face each time they put on their uniform, but the calling they feel to serve the public is stronger than any fear."

Wolf was on patrol when a 72-year-old motorist from Waterford driving a car hauling a trailer hit his department-issued motorcycle while changing lanes at about 6:30 a.m., Etue said at a news conference earlier in the day.

Wolf was on patrol on northbound Dixie Highway crossing over southbound I-75 in Springfield Township when the vehicle collided with Wolf's motorcycle.

Wolf was dragged by the trailer until the driver eventually stopped after pulling into a rest area north of Springfield Township. He is cooperating with investigators. No charges were immediately filed.

Wolf joined the state police in 2008 and has served posts in the Jackson, Flint and Detroit areas.

He lived in Fenton, Michigan with his wife, who is a teacher, and four children -- aged 4, 6, 9 and 12. They were both heavily involved in the Great Lakes Baptist Church, where Chad Wolf led a youth group and also sang.

"He was always the kind of person where, if anything was wrong, you could go to him," said Sarah Strygulec, 18, a family friend who has babysat the family's kids. "He wouldn't judge you for anything you did. His door was always open to talk, he was always just a phone call away."

His family has set up a GoFundMe page to help with funeral costs.

Through most of the day, the northbound lanes of the busy freeway were shut down as investigators reconstructed the collision and gathered evidence. The northbound lanes reopened about 5 p.m.

Gov. Rick Snyder issued a statement expressing his sympathies to Wolf's family.

"My heart is broken for Trooper Wolf's family, his friends and his Michigan State Police colleagues. The troopers who serve us every day in the name of public safety are incredibly brave, selfless and honorable. This loss will be felt deeply by the entire state of Michigan," Snyder said.

"Trooper Wolf today laid down his life in service to others, and for that his family will never be the same. The First Lady and I extend our heartfelt condolences to them. Our thoughts and prayers also go out to everyone at the Michigan State Police who had the honor of working with Trooper Wolf, as well as those who knew him in the communities he served."

Free Press staff writer Daniel Bethencourt and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Tribune News Service