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Police: Motorcycle Chase from Tappan Zee Bridge Ends in 3 Crashes, Fatality

Motorcyclist killed in crash with police car; state trooper, Yonkers police officers assaulted.

One motorcyclist is dead after a crash with a police car and three others have been arrested from a chase that started on the Tappan Zee Bridge and ended in Yonkers.

Police said a state trooper was assaulted on the bridge and four Yonkers police officers were injured while making one of the arrests.

The identity of the dead man has not yet been released by police.

Arrested by Yonkers police were:

  • Dennis Norwood, 51, of 228 Livingston Ave. He is accused of Assault 2nd degree, Resisting Arrest, Unlawfully Fleeing a Police Officer, Reckless Driving, and he was issued numerous Vehicle and Traffic violations.
  • Kenneth Hammond, 49, of 415 Loomis Street in Elizabeth, NJ. He was charged with Unlawfully Fleeing a Police Officer and he was issued numerous Vehicle and Traffic violations.  

Arrested by State Police was:

- Hassan Miller, 46, of Leroy, NY, who was charged with assault on an officer, reckless endangerment, reckless driving, illegal possession of marijuana and operating a motor vehicle while impaired by drugs. Miller was being held pending a arraignment in Greenburgh Town Court. He is accused of hitting a state trooper in the head.

Police said the incident began at the Tappan Zee Bridge, where a group of motorcyclists was stopped. Yonkers police said they were alerted at 10:35 p.m. Saturday that the trooper involved in the stop was assaulted. A pursuit, also involving Westchester County Police, traveled through various communities, eventually entering the City of Yonkers on North Broadway. 

Yonkers police spotted three different motorcyclists traveling southbound on North Broadway at a high rate of speed. One of the motorcyclists lost control in the area of North Broadway and Executive Boulevard, causing the motorcycle to fall to the ground.

The operator of the motorcycle, later identified as Dennis Norwood, immediately stood up and officers ordered him to the ground. Norwood, police said, then took a fighting stance with his fists raised in the air. Yonkers officers then became involved in a physical struggle with Norwood, and he was eventually handcuffed with the assistance of additional officers, police said. 

Four Yonkers officers were injured during this arrest. 

A second motorcyclist, later identified as Kenneth Hammond, lost control of his motorcycle in the area of 919 N. Broadway, subsequently falling to the ground.  He was taken into custody by Yonkers officers without incident.

A third motorcyclist fleeing the scene became involved in an accident with a marked Yonkers Police patrol car in the area of North Broadway and Lake Avenue.  The drivers of this motorcycle was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. 

The four Yonkers officers injured during this incident were placed off duty.  Accident investigators were called to the scene and the circumstances of the fatal accident are being investigated by the Internal Affairs Division.

The Westchester County District Attorney’s Office was also notified and an Assistant District Attorney responded to the scene.

Norwood and Hammond were awaiting arraignment in Yonkers City Court.

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Scotty September 3, 2012 at 03:03 pm
And they say you never see a motorcycle parked outside a psychiatrists'office. Seems these riders needed a little talking to on how to ride and and stay alive and out of jail.
Rob September 3, 2012 at 08:48 pm
When I read the headline, I was thinking these guys must me late teens and early 20's....Man,, late 40's and early 50's...Some folks will just never will get it....
Veronica September 4, 2012 at 05:15 pm
How about a proof reader for this article?
Balar Gazor September 4, 2012 at 08:00 pm
Let's hear more details. Assault may mean rolling a wheel too close to a cop's shoe and being involved in an accident with a police car mean being hit at a high rate of speed by a police car. Or maybe we will never hear the details. After all, it's just one biker killed.
Scott Petricig September 4, 2012 at 08:28 pm
Balar Gazor.. the assault (as reported by other news sources) was one of the bikers head-butting one of the officers with his helmet. The officer required stiches. I would say that qualifies as assault. The main fact is that these bikers chose to not stop for police officers, and therefore put their own lives at risk as well as those of the officers and any other people on the road.
Walden Macnair September 4, 2012 at 08:46 pm
These were not "good guys". They were a group of idiots with high speed bullets under them. I have no sympathy for the dead biker. He could have been alive today had he simply pulled over and gotten a summons. Instead he chose to run. His choice closed his fate.
al brown September 5, 2012 at 12:20 pm
Yeah all bikers r not the same so don't think what those guys did or was doing n hold it against all riders that u c, there r a lot of good n safe riders around
Sick-n-Tired September 5, 2012 at 02:54 pm
How about stopping when pulled over? It's a pretty simple concept. Then all of this could of been avoided.
Bob Rohr September 6, 2012 at 08:30 pm
I have been riding for 40 years and most riders are fine. A small percentage think they are indestructible. My cousin just received a new liver from one of those, so some good came out of it.
P.S. Bill, come up to top of Bear Mountain, meet the riders and see what kind of people they are. If you want to see what kind of people they can become, repeat that statement loudly.
Nummy September 6, 2012 at 08:54 pm
Hey Veronica the holy smart one, proofreader is one word.
Susan Troop September 6, 2012 at 09:16 pm
Hey, Nummy, the even holier, smart one, your sentence structure and punctuation are incorrect.
Kevin September 6, 2012 at 10:43 pm
I would not automatically trust what the police had to say. They quite often customize the truth to suit themselves. Look at all the rape cops in NYC that blamed the victim for consenting. One was just sent to jail for 70 years last month. He raped a girl in Inwood and claimed it was a "date". So dont be so fast to believe the cops.
Nummy September 6, 2012 at 11:07 pm
Susan your 100% right, but I have a name that backs up my bad spelling and grammar!, Numbskull make no claim to being the holy smart one....i just like to pick on the ones that pick on the not so 100% correct spellers.
Nyguy September 7, 2012 at 01:56 am
I see alot of responsible riders but also lately while driving on local parkways there are hordes of street bike dudes weaving at 100mph+ through traffic on the highway. It's super dangerous, you see the cars drivers swerve due to suprise of 20 bikes ripping by on all sides of the car. I hope the cops crack down on that, its not acceptable in a car so it shouldn't be on a bike. They'll really be a bloodbath when the girls riding on the back of the bikes get tossed in a high speed crash.
Jack Meoff September 7, 2012 at 12:35 pm
I have been riding bikes since 1951. I have seen the manufacturers give to bikes so much power that they cannot use and I have seen riders who think that they are on a race track instead of a street. There are no drivers ed classes needed for a bike license and the law allows them to drive with out muffler so that they can spoil your
peace and quiet with unneeded noise. I see people riding with phony helmets and they think that they are cool. The Hells Angel mentality has killed more riders than even the idiots in cars that "Did Not See the bike" and turned in front of them. These guy give a bad name to people who do not need a bike to prove that they have Cojones but just love to ride. I would bet a million dollars that the bike these idiots were riding Harleys. If you hit a car when you are riding you will be in big trouble. The Hockey Puck that got killed was asking to die. He got his wish.
Dave Von September 8, 2012 at 08:13 am
Jackie:
strange comments from a biker. I haven't researched any other articles on the accident but since u haven't referenced any, I hope u get to keep your Million $$ and enjoy bikers dying. just not how I feel after loosing some good friends in "accidents". I've been riding for 25 years. always ride responsibly and always care about life.....even your Jackie:-)
jeff meyer September 8, 2012 at 03:36 pm
Jay, I am sure that among police officers the feeling is mutual. Jeff Meyer Tuckahoe,NY
James Bankhart September 8, 2012 at 04:31 pm
These wannabe outlaw bikers, put a lot of people in danger during this chase. I commute on these roads daily and they are very congested and dangerous at the best of times.
I ride a Motorcycle and it is a great past time. Jerks like these make it bad for the rest of us.
Walden Macnair September 8, 2012 at 04:32 pm
Jack, Why would you think that this moron was riding a Harley. I live near the Bear Mountain Parkway that gets a lot of bikers and I found that the Harley riders are a lot more responsible than the guys on rice burners but I wouldn't condemn either as a group.
This article is about a group of morons who shouldn't be on the road at all. One will never be again and the others should all have their licenses revoked for life.
Ross Revira September 8, 2012 at 05:00 pm
Congratulations to the police officers in arresting these idiots. I concur that the "Motorcycle Ninjas" (I don't mean the model of the bike) can be a menace on the road. Speaking as a Harley rider it is not how fast you go but how you look and sound.
Bignik735 September 21, 2012 at 04:17 am
Wow as I read the comments, there are always 3 sides to a story. But 2 things we know for sure, 1) the dead biker isn't here to defend himself and 2) we will never know the truth.
RealTimeRufus September 21, 2012 at 11:52 am
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Stupidity.
"No angel born in hell can break that Satan spell" - I think Don McLean said that. Billy Joel used to ride through Bedford-Stuy alone.
joe September 21, 2012 at 05:53 pm
He even "rode his motorcycle in the rain".
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