ATV strikes Yorktown man in intentional attack: Police

YORKTOWN -- A Yorktown man was hospitalized after being struck on Sunday by an all-terrain vehicle at a baseball field in this northern Westchester town, town officials said.

Police believe the man on the ATV intentionally struck the resident, Chief Robert Noble said, and an initial charge of felony first-degree assault has been filed.

The resident was allegedly trying to stop several ATV and dirt bike riders from damaging the Lakeside Park ballfield’s grounds, Town Supervisor Tom Diana said in a statement Monday. Lakeside Park is bordered by Hunterbrook and Mill Pond roads.

The victim and the suspect remain hospitalized, Noble said.

According to witnesses, the statement said, multiple people were on ATVs and dirtbikes. “We have recovered and have in our possession the ATV which struck our victim. The suspect in this crime will be charged once he is released from an area hospital. Our victim also remains in an area hospital,” the chief’s statement said Monday.

The statement added that while the suspect is an adult, "we have reason to believe that several juveniles were present on the aforementioned ATV's and dirt bikes.”

ATVs are not allowed at the town’s parks because their tires can damage playing fields, grass and other landscaping, the statement said.

“It is illegal for ATVs and dirt bikes to be operated on public property not specifically designated for their usage,” the statement said. “Parents must make that rule clear to their children who own these vehicles.”

The case is under investigation.

As the facts emerge, Diana stated, the Town Board will reexamine ordinances and consider measures to ensure what happened doesn’t again.

Michael McKinney is a breaking-news reporter with The Journal News, Poughkeepsie Journal and Times Herald-Record of Middletown.