Shelter Island Police blotter

Those named in arrest reports or receiving police summonses have not been convicted of a crime. In court, the charges against them may be reduced or withdrawn or the defendants may be found not guilty.

ARREST
Elizabeth Ann Lechmanski, 33, of Shelter Island was stopped around 1:30 a.m. on July 29 for driving at a speed unreasonable and imprudent and failing to signal. Following an investigation, she was arrested for driving while intoxicated. She was also ticketed for refusal to take a breath test. Ms. Lechmanski was arraigned at Shelter Island Justice Court before Judge Mary-Faith Westervelt and was released on her own recognizance with orders to return to court at a later date.

ACCIDENTS
Two minor accidents were reported to police last week. L. Rodriguezalvizrs of Shelter Island told police July 27 that he was driving east bound on Smith Street around 11 p..m. when a deer ran into the driver’s side of his vehicle causing damage estimated in excess of $1,000.

Michelle C. Corbett of Shelter Island reported for informational purposes on July 31 that she and Timothy King of Shelter Island drivers in a minor accident with no damage or injuries on North Ferry Road .

SUMMONSES
Rachel M. Ruskin of New York City was ticketed on July 31 on North Ferry Road for operating  a motor vehicle (MV) while using a portable electronic device.

Ticketed for speeding in the 25-miles per hour (mph) zone on New York Avenue last week were: Jacqueline C. Woo of New York City on July 31 at 35 mph; on July 30, Stella Monitors of Brooklyn, 47 mph, and Cole B. Charnas of New York City, 40 mph; Lorenzo A. Benazzo of New York City, July 30, 40 mph; Andrew Warren of New York City, July 29, 35 mph; and James M. Budill of Larchmont, July 27, 40 mph.

Daniel R. Boeklen of Shelter Island was ticketed on July 29 on West Neck Road for driving an unregistered MV, improper license plates, operating an MV without insurance, and unsafe starting. The car he was driving was impounded by police.

Ticketed for speeding in the 35-mph zone on St. Mary’s Road last week were: Stuart B. Goldman of Shelter Island, July 29, 50 mph; and Joseph T. Vormittag of Medford, July 28, 45 mph.
James T. Brockman of East Hampton was ticketed on July 28 on North Ferry Road for operating an MV with a suspended or revoked registration.

Concepcion Arriaza of Flanders was ticketed on July 28 on North Cartwright Road for speeding 53 miles per hour in a 35-mph zone.

Ticketed on New York Avenue for disobeying a traffic control device were: Dilver  H. Chavez of Lawrence, New York on July 28; and Carlos D. Diaz of Newark on July 25.

Ticketed on West Neck Road were: Vanessa A. Confessore of Bellmore on July 27 for failure to stop at a stop sign and Leandro S. Verasaluse of Miami Beach on July 25 for failure to keep right.

Bay constables issued tickets to: Stephen J. Meringoff of New York City on July 31 for having no visual distress signal aboard (he was also issued a warning for leaving the scene of a boating accident); and Justin Felipe Chachocortes of Everett, Washington on July 29 for keeping a half dozen undersized porgies.

Officers issued 41 parking tickets last week.

OTHER REPORTS

Police were investigating a report of possible drug activity on July 28.

In a relatively quiet week, fire alarms, people fishing from ferry boats, and dogs at large and stuck in a car were the cause of activity.

A fire alarm undergoing repair activated at a West Neck location on July 25; the Shelter Island Fire Department, unaware of the maintenance, responded and determined it was an unecessary activation. Burning food in a West Neck residence triggered another alarm later that day. The next day, a chirping CO detector just needed new batteries.

On July 31, the SIFD responded to another false alarm at a West Neck location. Later, burning food at a Heights location prompted a response from the SIFD.

The North Ferry company on July 26 reported that it appeared people had been boarding ferries after hours at night to fish, causing concern for the security of the boats and the safety of the unauthorized people; extra police patrols were requested.

A small dog found by a passerby on Cartwright Road was reunited with its owner on July 30. Later in the Hay Beach area, a caller complained of a loose dog, but it had been rounded up and leashed by its owner by the time police arrived. Outside a West Neck area hotel on July 31, a caller reported a dog locked in a vehicle with the windows up.

The responding officer and animal control officer found the vehicle parked in the shade with the windows partially open. They removed the dog from the vehicle and found it was unharmed. But then the owner of the establishment approached and told the officers the animal belonged to a person who allegedly had been attempting to steal items. Permission to search the vehicle was obtained and items belonging to the hotel were found inside. The vehicle’s owner was told to leave and not return.

The animal control officer removed an unspecified number of animals (no description given) that had become stuck in a Center drain on July 25.

Items lost and found last week include: a bike, a canoe, two signs, a Hobie Cat (that went missing in strong winds), a cell phone, a kite board, a wet suit and a drone.

Bay constables were busy. On July 26, they assisted kayakers who overturned in Coecles Harbor; on July 27, they ran safety patrols for a sailboat regatta as it crossed the North Ferry channel; on July 29 they warned a half dozen people fishing at Reel Point about keeping undersized fish; and on July 30 they escorted a vessel that had hit some rocks near Sag Harbor to the village dock.

Later, a bay constable followed up without success on a report of a speeding vessel in West Neck Creek, and then in waters off West Neck, stopped a Boston Whaler with a capacity for eight that had 10 people aboard. The constable took two of the passengers and escorted the vessel back to its home port. On July 31, a bay constable assisted paddleboarders in distress in the South Ferry channel.

Also last week: an officer checked a garage door that had been partly left open but found it had apparently been done to venitalate refrigeration equipment inside; a caller reported a banging but by the time the responding officer arrived the noise had stopped; an intoxicated man found in the West Neck area in the wee hours refused assistance and left the area under his own power; gun shots were reported on the Ram Island causeway, but the responding officer canvassed the area with negative results, and a woman reported that a driver who had gone up on a lawn to avoid a speed bump shouted at her when she told her to stay on the pavement.

A center caller was referred to the Town Building Department to work out a dispute over noise from construction activity and a report of a damaged stop sign was referred to the Highway Department.

The owner of a car parked opposite another person’s driveway complied when asked to move it; twice people listening to music volunteered to tone it down when made aware of noise complaints, even though the sound didn’t meet the level of a violation; parents of three youths found hanging around after hours in the Center were notified; taxis were called to take two men who reportedly had been fighting in the water at a beach to the ferry late on July 30; a suspicious vehicle was reported on the South Ferry, but departed without incident on July 31 just after midnight, and a caller attempting to dial a 917 number accidentally called 911.

AIDED CASES
Shelter Island Emergency Medical Services teams transported to Eastern Long Island Hospital in Greenport one aided case on July 27, two on July 28, and one on July 29. SIEMS teams transported an aided to Southampton Hospital on July 29 and another on July 30.