Marine vet amputee gets job as police officer

BRENTWOOD, N.Y. — A U.S. Marine Corps veteran who lost his legs below the knee after stepping on an explosive in Afghanistan is joining a suburban New York police department. Matias Ferreira just completed 29 weeks of training at the Suffolk County Police Academy on Long Island. After a graduation ceremony Friday, the 6-foot-1, 215-pound rookie will be in a patrol car next week. Ferreira was a lance corporal in the Marines in 2011 when he was injured. He was leading a team at a compound of suspected Taliban fighters when he jumped off a roof and onto a hidden bomb. Within three months he was up and walking on prosthetic legs. He has played on a softball team of wounded veterans. He also is a scuba diver, skydiver and motorcycle rider.