Off-duty Kingston officer shoots driver during road-rage confrontation in Wawayanda, Orange County, police say
A man is in critical condition after police say an off-duty officer shot him following a road rage confrontation in Orange County.
It happened Thursday around 3:45 p.m. on Dolsontown Road near McVeigh Road.
Cellphone video appears to show what went down after one man pulled a knife and the officer pulled a gun.
Officials say the confrontation escalated when the driver of a Volkswagen, 31-year-old Wallace Fisher, got out of his car and approached the driver of a Toyota.
Police say the verbal altercation at the driver's side window turned physical and Fisher allegedly pulled out a knife and took a swing inside the car.
It is unclear in the video if he is holding the knife as he takes a swing.
"The boy swing, he punched him and immediately three shots went off," Eyewitness Rob Parker said.
That is when the driver of the Toyota, 33-year-old Anthony Simon, an off-duty Kingston police officer, discharged his firearm and shot Fisher, authorities say.
The eyewitness who shot the video of the incident said he started rolling when he noticed the two cars swerving and cutting each other off -- a spat that began when one cut the other off while exiting a car wash.
"The person that got cut off from the cop was tailgating after that, the cop was break-checking him then the boy tried to pass him and the cop went on the other side of the road and tried to run him off the road," Parker said.
Fisher was shot twice in the neck and shoulder and was taken to the hospital, where he was said to be critical but stable at Westchester Medical Center.
So far, no charges have been filed as state police continue to investigate.
Police are reviewing video and interviewing witnesses.
"When he got out the car, he could have left. The same way I watched him swerve lane to lane and he get out the way or him the boy from passing. I feel like the whole thing could have been avoided. On both parties, I feel like they were wrong," Parker said.
The Kingston Police Department said the officer, who has been employed by the Kingston Police since 2022, has been placed on administrative duty until the investigation is concluded.
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Anyone who may have witnessed the incident is asked to contact State Police Middletown at 845-344-5300.
