Shots Fired In May 9 Car Chase In Hoosick Falls

by Bea Peterson
At 4:15 am, May 9, a Hoosick Falls Police officer attempted to pull over a vehicle driven by Bryan E. Purcell, age 36, of 60 Tory Hill Road. According to Police Chief Robert Ashe, Purcell refused to stop and the officer pursued the vehicle up Cummings St. At some point Purcell drove the car off the road, traveling across lots. He returned to Route 22, closest to Route 7,  where he was again pursued by the police. Purcell suddenly slammed on his brakes, and the cruiser ran into the back of Purcell’s vehicle. When the officer stepped out of the cruiser Purcell turned his vehicle toward him. In backing away, the officer lost his balance and began to fall. With the vehicle headed toward him, the officer drew his weapon and fired at the vehicle, which then veered away from him. “Thank God he did,” said the Chief, “or we could have had an officer killed.”
Chief Ashe would not identify the officer. Purcell and the passenger with him then took off into the nearby woods on foot. Members of the HFPD, NY State Police, the Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Department and the Troy Police K-9 unit searched the area and located the passenger. Purcell later turned himself in to Hoosick Falls Police. He was charged with Attempted Assault of a Police Officer, Criminal Mischief 2nd and Fleeing a Police Officer in a Motor Vehicle 3rd. He was arraigned before Judge Thomas Restino and remanded to the Rensselaer County Jail with bail set at $10,000. The investigation is continuing, and Purcell may face more charges at a later date.