Newburgh man pleads guilty to hate crime against off-duty Black police officer

By Edward Era Barbacena

A Newburgh man pleaded guilty to a hate crime Thursday after admitting he menaced a Black off-duty police officer with a knife.

The defendant, a 61-year-old white man named William Ryan, had been accused of threatening the man in the city of Newburgh on June 11.

The target of his attack was Robert McLymore, a lieutenant with the town of Wallkill Police Department. McLymore, who is a pastor at the Restoration Church in Newburgh, was on his way to the church to lock up for the night. His 18-year-old son was with him at the time.

Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler said Ryan pleaded guilty to second-degree menacing, a misdemeanor, as a hate crime. He also pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a felony.

According to Hoovler, Ryan first got into a verbal dispute with the off-duty lieutenant before calling him a racial epithet and driving off. They were stopped at an intersection at the time of the first confrontation. Ryan then proceeded to follow the lieutenant in his car and wave a knife at him.

When McLymore pulled into the parking lot of a restaurant, Ryan did, too. Hoovler said Ryan approached McLymore's car and held a knife inches from his face.

Hoovler said Ryan then left, but returned and confronted the lieutenant again, cursing and using racial epithets and jabbing the blade into the open window of his car, threatening to stab him.

Ryan then fled, but city police were able to identify him as a suspect. He was arrested three days later.

Hoovler said that during plea proceedings, Ryan admitted that he unlawfully possessed a knife that he used to place or attempt to place McLymore in reasonable fear of serious physical injury or death.

Hoovler also said Ryan admitted that he was motivated, in whole or in part, to commit the crimes against the lieutenant by a belief or perception about his race. Ryan apologized for his actions, Hoovler said.

"Hate has no place in our community," Hoovler said in a statement released by his office. "This defendant's reprehensible conduct is particularly troubling because of the hatred that motivated it."

An attorney for Ryan could not be reached in time for this story.

Ryan will be sentenced on Nov. 17. Hoovler said he will recommend that Ryan serve six months in state prison, five years of probation and perform 500 hours of community service.