34°
Clarkstown police said they responded to reports of a woman screaming at the Tappan Zee Hotel on northbound Route 303 shortly after 5 a.m. Monday, Oct. 17.
They found a victim, they said, who told them that her boyfriend, 46-year-old Todd Humphrey of Stony Point, had hit her in the head with a hammer while she was in the shower.
She escaped the room and got the attention of hotel staff who dialed 911 as Humphrey fled, they said.
The officers rendered medical aid until EMS arrived.
A manhunt followed as alerts were dispatched to various law enforcement agencies.
It was around 1:30 p.m. when New York State Police troopers spotted Humphrey and his vehicle in Putnam County.
A pursuit followed.
It ended in a head-on collision of a pickup truck and an SUV atop the Newburgh Beacon Bridge in Newburgh, along with damage to other vehicles, including a State Police cruiser, responders said.
It wasn't immediately clear which vehicle Humphrey was driving.
A sedan with New Jersey license plates was also severely damaged, photos and video from the scene show.
Fortunately, no serious injuries were immediately reported in the incident, which caused major traffic jams in various directions before blocked lanes eventually were reopened shortly before 3 p.m.
Humphrey, formerly of Haverstraw, was charged by Clarkstown police with attempted murder and felony assault before sending him to the Rockland County Correctional Facility in New City. More charges were expected from them and State Police.
From Rockland Video Productions:
Click here to follow Daily Voice Highland Lakes-Vernon and receive free news updates.
