KINGSTON – A Newburgh City police officer faces up to 2 1/3 to seven years in state prison when sentenced in January after being convicted by an Ulster County Court jury in connection with a hit-and-run accident in Marlborough.

Thomas Douglass IV of Milton was found guilty in connection with the October 11, 2009 crash on Route 9W in which Douglass’ pickup truck struck a vehicle injuring four of five occupants in the other vehicle, seriously and permanently injuring one of them.

The trial, which lasted eight days and ended on November 23, resulted in Douglass being convicted on felony charges of insurance fraud in the third degree and falsifying business records in the first degree for actions he took to conceal the accident. He falsely reported an alleged car-deer accident to the State Police and then filed an insurance claim for damage to his vehicle maintaining the damage was from the impact with the deer. The jury determined that was not the case.

Earlier in the year, tow truck operator Scott Hecht who aided Douglass in filing the false claim, was indicted by an Ulster County grand jury for perjury for the false testimony he gave.