POUGHKEEPSIE – A 26-year-old man has been charged with several crimes after he fought with police and firefighters at the scene of an accident in Poughkeepsie on Wednesday. A police officer suffered injuries in the scuffle.
Patrick McRitchie was arrested Wednesday afternoon on felony assault, resisting arrest, obstructing governmental administration, and disorderly conduct. He was arraigned Wednesday evening and released with an appearance ticket for a future court date.
According to police, the incident began on June 8, at approximately 12:42 p.m. after officers and members of the Poughkeepsie Fire Department were dispatched to the area of Church Street and South White Street for a report of a motor vehicle accident.
As officers were conducting their investigation, an uninvolved pedestrian, later identified as Patrick McRitchie, arrived on the scene and began cursing and yelling at firefighters while on a public roadway.
Utilizing their crisis intervention and de-escalation training, officers requested that McRitchie leave the area. McRitchie remained uncooperative until officers ordered him to leave the area. McRitchie went to the street corner and began punching the crosswalk mechanism on the utility pole.
McRitchie then left the area and returned several minutes later at which time officers attempted to take him into custody.
McRitchie failed to comply with an officer’s directives and a struggle ensued. When the scuffle between the officer and McRitchie escalated, the firefighters assisted the officer until additional police arrived. The first officer sustained an injury and was transported by ambulance to a local hospital, treated, and released.
McRitchie became unruly while being transported to police headquarters and it took a few officers to remove him from the car and place him in a cell. McRitchie then used the holding cell as a bathroom and urinated on the floor.
City of Poughkeepsie PBA President Kevin VanWagner said, “We appreciate the assistance of the city firefighters of Local 596 for their assistance during the incident. We work together to keep each other, and the city safe.”
