Police: Woman shot by troopers was having mental health crisis

A woman shot dead by police after a Tuesday night chase and standoff in Monroe County was mentally ill, thinking officers wanted to kidnap, rape and murder her, authorities said Thursday.

Betty Tibaldi, 54, of the first block of Holly Forest Road in Mount Pocono, had refused to take prescribed medication when she and her husband, Nello Tibaldi, 77, led police on a 10:40 p.m. chase from the American Candle Shoppe on Route 611 in Pocono Township, an affidavit states. The Tibaldis fled north on Route 611 and were forced to stop minutes later, just north of Shine Hill Road, when police used stop-sticks to puncture their pickup truck’s tires.

When the Tibaldis refused to exit the truck and police learned the couple had a gun, officers set up a perimeter and called in a state police emergency response team and negotiator. Several hours later, after the Tibaldis’ relatives arrived, Nello Tibaldi exited the passenger side to surrender and passed the gun to his wife, who then fired at police, the affidavit states.

The Monroe County coroner’s office later pronounced Betty Tibaldi dead on the scene.

According to police:

The incident began when officers on patrol saw the Tibaldis’ pickup parked in the candle shop’s lot after hours and approached to ask why the couple was there. The couple stopped there to let their dog go to the bathroom, Nello Tibaldi later told police.

Betty Tibaldi began yelling at police as she leashed the dog, and got back into the truck. As officers were trying to speak to Nello Tibaldi on the passenger side, she drove off.

Nello Tibaldi later told officers his wife believed police were out to kidnap, rape and murder them. Another relative said Betty Tibaldi had schizophrenia and previously was escorted from a New York hotel by a police special weapons and tactics team when having a mental health crisis. The relative said she refused to take medication, according to police.

District Judge Brian Germano sent Nello Tibaldi to Monroe County jail under $25,000 bail on charges of illegal possession of a gun and reckless endangerment.