New York State Police fatally shoots Albert Melendez after pursuit in Sullivan County

State Police shot and killed a man during a pursuit that injured a trooper early Tuesday morning in Rock Hill, a hamlet in the Sullivan County town of Thompson.

State Police said in a news release issued later on Tuesday that the shooting occurred during a vehicle pursuit at about 2:20 a.m. near Rock Hill Drive. Police identified the driver as Albert Melendez, 32, of Middletown.

State Police Executive Director of Public Information Beau Duffy told the Times Union that Ulster County sheriff’s deputies began pursuing Melendez shortly after 2 a.m. when deputies tried to pull him over for a suspended vehicle registration. Duffy said State Police didn’t know where the pursuit began, but that Ulster County sheriff’s deputies ended their chase when Melendez crossed into Sullivan County.

State troopers then began their pursuit in the village of Wurtsboro. At one point, Melendez tried to turn his car around at the intersection of Rock Hill Drive and Emerald Place in Rock Hill, according to the release. A trooper, whom Duffy identified as Russell T. Peters, then left his patrol vehicle and yelled for Melendez to stop his vehicle, police said.

But Melendez’s vehicle continued forward, hitting Peters, who then fired his service weapon, striking Melendez, police said. Troopers provided emergency medical care to Melendez before he was transported to Garnet Health Medical Center, where he died, according to the release. Peters was also treated at Garnet for minor injuries and has been released.

During the pursuit, Peters was partnered with another trooper who was driving, Duffy said. Nearby deputies with the Sullivan County sheriff’s office responded to the scene almost immediately, as well as other State Police personnel, he said.

Duffy said Peters was the only trooper who fired at Melendez.