Driver charged in Hayward crash that killed rookie CHP officer

VALLEJO - A 22-year-old man who killed a rookie California Highway Patrol officer on Christmas Eve after slamming his car into the back of the officer's parked patrol car was charged Tuesday with second-degree murder.

Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O'Malley identified Mohammed Ali, of the San Francisco Bay Area city of Hayward, as the driver of the speeding Cadillac that drifted off Interstate 880 and crashed against Officer Andrew Camilleri's patrol sports utility vehicle.

Camilleri was killed in the crash. His partner, Jonathan Velasquez, who was in the driver's seat, was treated at a hospital and released.

O'Malley said Ali, who has been hospitalized since the Dec. 24 wreck, was also charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and other drugs and driving more than 100 mph (161 kph).

California Highway Patrol Assistant Chief Ernest Sanchez said Ali is expected to be released from a hospital in the next 48 hours and will be booked into the Santa Rita Jail.

The police SUV was parked on the interstate's shoulder in Hayward as the officers watched for dangerous drivers when Ali crashed into them, police said.

"The loss of life which could have been avoidable if every driver acts responsibly and lawfully," O'Malley said.

Family, friends and hundreds of law enforcement officers and firefighters from around the country gathered Saturday in Stockton to remember Camilleri.

Camilleri, who had been a highway patrol officer since March, is survived by his wife and three children, ages 12, 6 and 2, according to Gov. Jerry Brown's office.