WURTSBORO — Authorities are considering whether to file charges in a Sunday dispute between two well-known Wurtsboro brothers.

A forensic analysis of County Court Judge Frank LaBuda's ATV - currently impounded by the Sullivan County Sheriff's Office - may shed light on whether the judge intentionally ran over his brother Peter Labuda or if Peter accidentally grabbed the accelerator, causing the four-wheeler to roll over him.

Peter and his family contend Frank did it on purpose after Peter refused Frank passage through Peter's property to get to hunting areas Frank uses. Frank denied such to investigators, according to a source.

The brothers are neighbors but are not necessarily close in life or views. Frank, for example, is a Democrat currently running unopposed for re-election to his long-held judicial post, while Peter is a Republican who last year unsuccessfully campaigned to become Mamakating Town Supervisor.

They even spell their last names differently: Frank with a capital “B” in LaBuda, Peter with a lowercase “b.”

Police are still trying to piece together what happened Sunday afternoon, and they're not revealing much at this point, other than there was an incident involving an ATV on Peter's property.

“The operator was Frank LaBuda,” Undersheriff Eric Chaboty confirmed. “The person who was injured was Peter Labuda, the brother.”

Peter was taken to the hospital afterwards with multiple broken ribs and a fractured fibula, according to his daughter Anastasia. He was discharged on Wednesday and is back home recuperating, according to his girlfriend, Cheryl Beverson.

“It's going to be a long road to recovery,” she stated, adding that she's working on “getting some protection for Peter through the courts.”

In an email to the press, Anastasia said that her father initially called 911 to report being sideswiped by Frank's ATV. (Peter was not seriously injured at that point.)

“About seven minutes later my uncle decides to come back onto my dad's property with the 4-wheeler again,” she continued. “My dad asked him to stay off his property, so my uncle decided to run my dad over with his 4-wheeler.”

Anastasia said she heard her father scream, “What are you doing? Stop! Stop!”

“He dragged me about eight feet,” Peter alleged, seeking to file charges against his brother.

When contacted for comment, Frank declined to detail what happened that afternoon, other than to say, “If my brother would tell the truth, this matter would already be resolved.”

A source close to the investigation indicated Frank did not appear to be intoxicated or uncooperative to responding deputies, though Peter's family faults police for not administering a Breathalyzer test and for letting Frank leave the scene before the initial investigation was complete.

While the ATV continues to be examined by the Sheriff's Office, the District Attorney's Office is weighing whether to get involved.

DA Jim Farrell on Wednesday strongly indicated he'll appoint a special prosecutor if charges are filed - possibly someone outside of the county.

“With my office appearing before Judge LaBuda virtually every day, I want to make sure this investigation is done independently,” Farrell remarked. “... This is not a joint investigation [with the Sheriff's Office]. I do want an independent look at the facts.”