Attorney General James’ Office of Special Investigation Releases Report on Death of Albert Melendez, Jr.

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Office of Special Investigation (OSI) today released its report on the death of Albert Melendez, Jr., who died on July 16, 2024 following an encounter with members of the New York State Police (NYSP) in Sullivan County. After a thorough investigation, which included interviews with involved officers, review of footage from troopers’ body-worn cameras (BWC) and radio communications, and comprehensive legal analysis, OSI determined that a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the trooper’s actions were justified under New York law.

In the early morning hours of July 16, NYSP troopers were pursuing Mr. Melendez, who was speeding at up to 90 MPH on Wurtsboro Mountain Road in the Village of Wurtsboro, Sullivan County. Mr. Melendez turned left onto Rock Hill Drive and the pursuit ended at the intersection of Rock Hill Drive and Emerald Place. A trooper got out of his patrol vehicle and stood directly in front of Mr. Melendez’s vehicle, where he instructed Mr. Melendez to get out of his car. Mr. Melendez failed to comply, and instead drove his car directly into the trooper, striking him in the legs.

The trooper jumped to the passenger side of Mr. Melendez’s vehicle and discharged his service weapon, striking Mr. Melendez. Mr. Melendez was transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The trooper sustained non-life-threatening injuries during the encounter and was transported to a local hospital, where he was treated and released.

Under New York’s justification law, a police officer may use deadly physical force when the officer reasonably believes it to be necessary to defend against the use of deadly physical force by another. In this case, Mr. Melendez drove his vehicle directly into a trooper, striking him. Under these circumstances, given the law and the evidence, a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the trooper’s use of deadly physical force against Mr. Melendez was justified, and therefore OSI determined that criminal charges would not be pursued in this matter.

The OSI recommends that NYSP should amend its training manual to limit the scope of crimes that can serve as the basis for a vehicle pursuit. While the manual has been updated in the time since Mr. Melendez’s death, it still does not limit the number of crimes for which a vehicle pursuit is warranted.

Attorney General James has previously recommended that police departments reform the basis for police pursuits. In June 2025, Attorney General James issued a report on police pursuits, recommending that police departments ban high-speed police pursuits, with very narrow exceptions including when a violent felony has been or will be committed and when the driver’s conduct poses an imminent threat of death.