Crown Point road honors slain trooper

Trooper Lawrence Gleason was killed in the line of duty more than a decade ago, but his memory was alive as a group recently worked in his honor to clean up a section of highway near the new Lake Champlain Bridge. Active and retired state police, Boy Scouts, Girls Scouts and others — some who knew Gleason and others who only knew of him — worked on the Bridge Road. The first mile of road in New York is named in Gleason's memory. "Trooper Gleason gave his life trying to protect a woman in Crown Point on Feb. 11, 2002," said Bob Bearor, who helped organize the clean up event. "Now, 10 years later, his memory is being kept alive by the naming of the first mile on the New York side of the newly-erected Champlain Bridge in his honor." Working on the project were Bearor, Roger Aldridge, Cliff Bearor, Holly Bearor, Ted Bearor, T.J. Bearor, Alora Bearor, Sean Donovan, Ethan Mendel, Chadd Martin, Stacy martin, Wyatt Martin, Jason Peters, George Stannard, Rich Waldron, Brennan Waldron and A.J. Wallingford III. Also assisting was the New York State Department of Transportation and Tom Hughes of the Crown Point State Historic Site. Gleason, age 28, was shot and killed when he responded to a domestic disturbance call in Crown Point. The rookie trooper arrived at the home where Amanda Olcott was staying shortly after 8 a.m. Olcott had earlier called police to say her ex-boyfriend had threatened her with a knife and then left the residence. Gleason was interviewing the 36-year-old mother of two in her kitchen at about 8:20 a.m. when James Scharpf, 36, of Moriah returned to the home and fired three shots from a high-powered rifle from outside the house. Two shots went through a door of the house and another went through a wall, police said. Despite the fact that the trooper was wearing a standard-issue bulletproof vest, Gleason was killed instantly, police said. Scharpf, who police said had a history of domestic violence, then went into the house and killed Olcott before killing himself, police said. Gleason, a native of Hornell, worked out of the Schroon Lake state police station. A memorial to Gleason now stands at the Schroon Lake state police station.

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Crown Point road honors slain trooper

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