PINE BUSH – State Police are still waiting for Marybeth Coppodora to recover sufficiently to be interviewed following the bizarre chain of events that lead to her being hospitalized on September 24.

State Trooper David Dively was heading westbound on Route 52 at about 1:20 p.m. last Thursday when he saw a car swerving in and out of the eastbound lane. He turned around and gave chase with his lights on. At that point the car sped up and raced eastward, swerving wildly and hitting speeds of up to 70 miles per hour.

The car then turned onto Drexel Drive, ran off the road, came back onto the road, and then ran off the road a second time, flipped over, and landed upside down on its roof.

The driver, who was halfway out of the car by that point, was eventually airlifted to St. Francis Hospital in Poughkeepsie, where she was said to have non-life threatening injuries.

She was identified as Marybeth Coppodora, 47, of Pine Bush. At press time, Captain Nevins of the state police said she was still in the hospital and that she would be interviewed by the police at the earliest opportunity.

PINE BUSH – On Friday, September 25, around 8:30 p.m., a 15-year-old girl from Middletown was walking on Route 52 near the corner with Boniface Drive, when she was struck from behind by a white Honda, driven by 31-year-old Angela Burnett, of Pomona, New York.

Burnett left the scene of the accident, while Pine Bush Fire and Ambulance responded. The injured girl was flown out by helicopter to Westchester Medical Center, suffering from serious internal and head injuries.

Meanwhile a Tri-County search was underway for the white Honda, in Sullivan, Orange, and Rockland Counties. The vehicle was found by the Sullivan County Sheriff's Office in Thompson, Sullivan County. Angela Burnett was then tracked down to another vehicle on State Route 17 in Mamakating, by State Police, Wurtsboro and Town of Crawford Police Officers. She was arrested and charged with Leaving the Scene of a Personal Injury Accident, a felony. She was arraigned in Crawford Justice Court and remanded to Orange County Jail on $3,000 cash bail.

The Town of Crawford Police are continuing to investigate the incident and are seeking witnesses. Anyone with information is urged to call 845-744-3300.