Kumi Tucker

UAlbany freshman in critical condition after being hit by dirt bike in Albany Video Player is loading. This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color Transparency Background Color Transparency Window Color Transparency Font Size Text Edge Style Font Family End of dialog window. The family of a UAlbany student is by her side at Albany Med. She is in critical condition after being hit by a speeding illegal dirt bike in Albany. The family of a UAlbany student is by her side at Albany Med. She is in critical condition after being hit by a speeding illegal dirt bike in Albany early Saturday morning. The parents of Alexa Kropf got the emergency call this weekend that no family ever wants to get. The freshman was due to come home next week. Now– she's in a medically induced coma. Her family is hoping police find the individual responsible. Video recorded by a student overnight Friday shows a police car arriving and a chaotic scene on Hudson Avenue in Albany. A crowd of young people surrounded 18-year-old UAlbany student Alexa Kropf of Long Island, who had just been hit. Police say a man speeding on an illegal dirt bike had been weaving in and out of groups of people in the road before he smashed into her. Students said speeding bikes and ATVs are a problem. “They come really often. They come down, try to play tricks, they pull wheelies all that stuff and they'll cause a bunch of smoke on the street, too,” said one. “A lot of stuff will happen with them riding on the street and trying to put on a show for us.” “There are plenty of families that live over here as well,” said another UAlbany senior. “It's a community in a neighborhood where people shouldn't speed, absolutely, yes.” Alexa's father, Jim Kropf, says she's in a medically induced coma with two leg fractures, fractures of the pelvis that will require surgery, broken ribs, bruised lungs and she's had two brain surgeries already to alleviate swelling. Here's a link to the family's GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/alexa-kropf-hit-and-run The problem of illegal dirt bikes and ATVs speeding noisily through city streets, running red lights, riding on sidewalks, has been going on for years. About two years ago, a police car collided with one of the dirt bikes on Clinton Avenue. The common council gave police the right to confiscate the vehicles, and now, as the community pulls for Alexa's speedy recovery, there will be a renewed push for solutions. “I'm hoping that our chief can come up with some more creative ways to do this because we can no longer have this,” said Albany Common Council President Corey Ellis. “Accidents like this brings light to it, but we have to put a stop to it. We can no longer play around with people who constantly disobey our laws.” Jim Kropf says the family is so overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from everyone. He says they can't thank law enforcement and the hospital enough.

The father of the UAlbany student who was hit by a dirt bike over the weekend in Albany gave us an update on her condition.

UAlbany freshman Alexa Kropf, 18, of Long Island is still in a medically-induced coma, still in critical condition, but stable.

New video of bikes moments before UAlbany student hit Video Player is loading. This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color Transparency Background Color Transparency Window Color Transparency Font Size Text Edge Style Font Family End of dialog window. New video shows bikes going up down streets, minutes before a UAlbany student was hit and critically injured. Video shows bikes in Albany, minutes before a UAlbany student was hit and critically injured on Hudson Avenue. Security video of just before midnight Friday night shows a bike going the wrong way on Ontario Street and then turning onto Hudson Avenue in Albany, going the wrong way on Hudson. Minutes later, people are seen running to the crash scene, and then a bike comes out of Hudson and drives off. Other surveillance video shows Ontario Street moments before. First, about six minutes before midnight, you can see three bikes, one after the other, on Ontario, which is a one-way street. Then you can see a bike going the wrong way on Ontario on the sidewalk before driving onto the road. About a minute later, another bike goes past, going in the correct direction. And then two minutes before midnight, a bike goes up the middle of Ontario in the wrong direction towards Hudson Avenue, just before the crash. Police say they responded to the injured student on Hudson Avenue at 12:01am. Police say a man speeding on an illegal dirt bike had been weaving in and out of groups of people in the road before he smashed into 18-year-old UAlbany freshman Alexa Kropf of Long Island. The problem of illegal dirt bikes and ATVs speeding noisily through city streets has been going on for years. Students say the entire student community is rooting for Alexa. “Something like this should never have happened and my prayers go out to Alexa and her family. It could have been any of us and I think there should be consequences for people on these dirt bikes.” Alexa's father said Wednesday that his daughter is still in critical condition, but stable. He asks people to continue to pray for her. No one has been arrested, so far.

UAlbany student hit by dirt bike now out of coma Video Player is loading. This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color Transparency Background Color Transparency Window Color Transparency Font Size Text Edge Style Font Family End of dialog window. The University at Albany student who was hit by a dirt bike is now off a ventilator and breathing on her own, according to her father. A UAlbany student who was hit by a dirt bike in Albany is breathing on her own tonight. She is off the ventilator, and out of a medically induced coma. It's good news but slow progress, and the biker that hit her is still on the loose. Her family is frustrated and heartbroken. 18-year-old Alexa Kropf was supposed to be getting ready to go home to Long Island after her freshman year at UAlbany. Instead, she's in critical condition at Albany Med. Last weekend, her life was changed in an instant. Police say a man speeding on an illegal dirt bike had been weaving in and out of groups of people in the street before he smashed into Alexa on Hudson Avenue in Albany, an area where many students live. Cellphone video shows the chaotic scene and a crowd of young people surrounding Alexa right after she was hit. Nearby security video shows bikes on nearby Ontario Friday night. Just before the crash, one went the wrong way on the one-way street, up towards Hudson, where the crash happened. Witnesses say the biker who hit Alexa came up Hudson the wrong way on that one-way street. The problem of illegal dirt bikes and ATVs speeding noisily through city streets, riding on sidewalks, has been going on for years. The Albany County Sheriff's Office recently seized almost a dozen motorbikes. “It's starting up already. It's been going on since the weather broke and here we have a young woman fighting for her life in the hospital as a result of these people with a depraved indifference, terrorizing the communities,” Sheriff Craig Apple said on Thursday. It's been a week of almost unbearable pain, heartbreak, and worry for her family. Her father, Jim Kropf, said Sunday night, “Even though it is progress, the road ahead is EXCRUCIATINGLY long. Not easy AT ALL looking at your child lying in bed with her head half shaved, 50 staples showing in her head from where they cut her skull open two times. Leg wrapped up with a rod in it. Pin in her pelvis. 5 broken ribs. Feeding tube and everything else she is hooked up to. I'm absolutely sick to my stomach and at the same time, hoping the police catch the piece of garbage responsible.” Here is the GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/alexa-kropf-hit-and-run A GoFundMe set up to help Alexa's recovery has raised nearly $90,000 so far.

Two friends were with UAlbany freshman Alexa Kropf when she was critically injured by an illegal dirt bike in Albany. They tell Kumi Tucker about what they witnessed more than a week ago.

The father of the UAlbany student hit by a dirt bike more than a week ago talks about the trauma the family has been through.

A local contractor is arrested, accused of stealing tens of thousands of dollars from a doctor's practice in Guilderland.

Germantown student becomes sheriff for the day You might have seen an unusually young member of the sheriff's department trying out equipment in Hudson today. An 11-year-old girl quickly rose through the ranks to become sheriff right away. Kelsey Mergenthaler is a fifth grader at Germantown Elementary. She won the contest to be sheriff for the day in Columbia County. Video Player is loading. This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color Transparency Background Color Transparency Window Color Transparency Font Size Text Edge Style Font Family End of dialog window. The Columbia County Sheriff's Office had a new leader; an 11-year-old girl took over as sheriff for the day after winning a competition. “And we write a lot of essays in school so I tried it and I had my parents sign the permission slip,” said Kelsey. “And then I didn't think I was going to win, but then I had a softball game that night and then when I got home, my dad told me and I didn't believe that I won!” She was sworn in by clerk Holly Tanner, she got a badge, and she tried out some equipment. She was selected because of her essay on why police are important to the community and what safety means to her. “Because they keep us safe and they put their lives on the line for us,” she said. Among the things that the Sheriff for the Day got to do is to go out on patrol on the sheriff's boat. It was a beautiful day for some time out on the water. Kelsey asked a lot of questions and listened carefully to the answers. “This is amazing. It gets our youth interested in law enforcement,” said Columbia County Sheriff Donald Krapf. “I think over the years we've seen a major decline in the interest in this field and to see someone put this much effort into an essay, and talk about law enforcement as a whole the way that this young lady did, it's just amazing. So for us, it's a great opportunity to bring some youth in to show that we are community oriented, and to give them a taste of what the sheriff's office is all about. And let them have some fun!” The thoughtful girl with a bright smile and bright future said she's considering becoming a police officer some day.

A 17-year-old in Rotterdam who just lost his beloved mother to cancer had a tough road ahead, especially when his power was shut off. That's when a network of people led by a very determined neighbor stepped in.