ELLENVILLE – With the unofficial end of summer having come and gone with Labor Day, Police Chief Phil Mattracion is hopeful that the busy streak the police have seen since April will start to ebb — but if the last week is any indication, there are no signs of this happening.

"The pace that we have here has not stopped," says the Chief. "We're hoping with the unofficial end of summer will come the unofficial end of this series of violent acts that have occurred over the last four months."

On Thursday, September 3, at about 8:45 p.m., police responded to a report of a fist fight in progress at the Getty station on the corner of Center and Main Streets. Upon arriving at the scene, however, the three fighters left the area. But, of course, that wouldn't last for long.

At about 9 p.m., the police got a phone call from Ellenville Regional Hospital, reporting of a stabbing victim in the emergency room.

"The victim was totally uncooperative and refused to give any information as to who had assaulted him. He sustained lacerations to his head, his face, his neck, his chest, and his throat," says Chief Mattracion.

The victim, 17-year-old Orlando Leandry of South Main Street, received over 70 stitches, including staples, to close the wounds that were inflicted upon him. After investigating the incident, police arrested Jose Rodriguez, 27, of Circle Avenue, who was found on the porch of 25 Market Street. Apparently, the fight moved down the block to the corner of Center and Market Streets, at which point Rodriguez stabbed Leandry with a box cutter. Also involved in the fight was 19-year-old Antoine Lewis, and all were arrested and charged.

Leandry and Lewis were charged with one count of assault in the third degree; Leandry was released on $3,000 cash bail, while Lewis was released on his own recognizance. Rodriguez was charged with assault in the second degree, and was remanded to the Ulster County Jail in lieu of $10,000 cash bail.

"We were able to obtain surveillance video in the area which indicated that the initial fight was a result of one of the subjects brushing up accidentally against another subject, and then both of those subjects turning around, having words, and then engaging in throwing punches at each other…. that leads to a second fight at the intersection of Center and Market streets. And that's where we believe the stabbing actually occurred," says Chief Mattracion.

In addition to the stabbing incident from last Thursday, the police have been kept pretty busy. The police recently arrested a man who was pretending to be someone else. Samuel Oliver of Mahwah, NJ, was arrested on Park Street after giving investigating officers the name of his brother as his own while being questioned regarding a domestic incident. He was arrested and remanded to the Ulster County Jail for the warrant out on his arrest, as well as for the charge of criminal impersonation.

That's not all: police also have been investigating the cause of a rollover car accident on Sunday at around 9:15 p.m, at the intersection of Canal and Center Streets coming from Cragsmoor. The victim of the crash was airlifted to St. Francis Hospital. Police also made a mental health arrest when a mother believed her son was going to commit suicide; he had slit his wrists and ran off. Upon being found by officers, he was highly intoxicated. Police brought him to Kingston Benedictine Hospital for evaluation.

Chief Mattracion reports that there have been seven domestic disputes to which police have responded since September 1, as well as one DWI arrest. Also, Joe Olivero, wanted in connection with a rash of burglaries and a gang assault from several months ago, was brought back to Ellenville and remanded to the Ulster County jail in lieu of $10,000 cash bail or $20,000 bond on Wednesday, September 3, seeming to finally close a chapter on the very first crimes that were committed earlier this year.

But, finally, the chief also wants to remind drivers to be on the lookout for an increase in foot traffic now that school is going to be back in session. He says that the street department has been repainting the lines around the village streets to better aid pedestrians crossing the streets, and to allow for drivers to see the pedestrian zones. He says that the police will be paying particular attention to violations being committed in school zones — but it's not about the number of tickets written and fines collected, but rather keeping pedestrians, especially children, safe.