DWI Crackdown Yields Over 20 Arrests

As part of a ramped up anti-drunken driving campaign on the East End, police set up check points and put on extra patrols in the Town of East Hampton over the Fourth of July weekend yielding 27 arrests, including 22 for drunken driving offenses.

The enforcement was part of the Suffolk County District Attorney's new that launched before Memorial Day weekend to crack down on drunken drivers on the East End.

A multi-agency effort, the Suffolk County Sheriffs assisted East Hampton Town and Village and Sag Harbor Village police departments on Saturday night, starting at 8 p.m, into Sunday morning at 4 a.m.

There were two additional arrests on seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance charges and three arrests on unlawful possession of marijuana charges.

While not all the reports were immediately available, the following people were arrested during that time frame and charged with misdemeanor DWI, according to East Hampton Town and Village police:

• Derek M. Skidmore, 26, of Clinton, MI, was arrested on Saturday at 9:10 p.m., on a charge of driving while ability impaired by drugs and/or alcohol. His 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee was stopped for having no headlamps on and police smelled marijuana coming from inside the vehicle. Police investigated and found a small quantity of marijuana in the passenger side door with a metal grinder and a glass smoking pipe. The passenger — a 26-year-old from Hampden, Mass. — was placed under arrest and police transported Skidmore, the driver, to headquarters for a field sobriety test, which could not be performed outside due to the inclement weather, police said in a report. He was placed under arrest after performing poorly on the tests. Held overnight, he was released on his own recognizance.

• Michael D. Higgins, 35, of New York City, was arrested on Saturday in Montauk at 9:45 p.m. He reportedly failed to signal as he turned onto Essex Street, near Main Street, and then into a parking lot. Held overnight for arraignment in East Hampton Town Justice Court, Higgins was released on his own recognizance.

• Jonathan Cohen, 60, of New York City, was arrested after he entered a check point in a 2004 Audi on Route 114, near Swamp Road, in East Hampton, on Saturday at 9:45 p.m. He performed poorly on field sobriety tests, but refused to take a breath test. He was released on his own recognizance the next day.

• Matthew P. Santini, 31, of Greenwich, CT, was arrested after he was stopped at a DWI checkpoint on Saturday at 9:47 p.m. Unable to perform satisfactorily on the field sobriety tests, he was taken into custody. He was released on his own recognizance the next morning.

• Christina D. Mazzawi, 55, of New York City, was on Hampton Street in Sag Harbor on Saturday at about 10 p.m. Police said she reportedly tried to turn around so as not to go through the checkpoint and refused to submit to a breath test.

• David R. Plotkin, 39, of Tenafly, NJ, was arrested on Stephen Hands Path in East Hampton after driving through a checkpoint. He refused to take a breath test after performing poorly on field sobriety tests. He was arrested on Sunday just after midnight.

• Brendan A. Amoruso, 24, of Oyster Bay, was driving on Main Street, near David's Lane, in East Hampton on Sunday, when police pulled him over for driving without headlights and crossing a double-yellow line. He failed field sobriety tests and was arrested at about 1 a.m. He was released on $300 bail.

• Justin M. Haar, 23, of Apline, NJ, was arrested on Sunday at 1:20 a.m., at the DWI checkpoint on Stephan Hands Path, near Montauk Highway, in East Hampton. He was charged with driving while ability impaired, a violation, and released on $100 station house bail.

• Abel R. LaPenna, 20, of East Hampton, was picked up for allegedly speeding on Route 114, near the Sag Harbor Golf Club, on Sunday at about 1:20 a.m. He was stopped on Merchant's Path in Wainscott. He was released on his own recognizance.

• Bridget A. Reilly, 50, of New York City, refused to take a breath test after she was pulled over swerving on Route 114 in East Hampton and performed poorly on field sobriety tests on Sunday at 1:30 a.m., according to village police.

• Daniel S. Hobbs, 46, of New York City, was arrested in Montauk on Sunday at 2:15 a.m., after allegedly swerving on Montauk Highway, near Old Montauk Highway. He was released on his own recognizance.

• Christine M. Brown, 23, of Montauk, was arrested in Montauk on Sunday at 2:20 a.m. Police said she drover in the shoulder with her directional on and then moved into the opposite lane into oncoming traffic on Flamingo Road, near Edgemere Road, police said.

• Julian S. Cavin-Zeidenstein, 22, of Brooklyn, was arrested after he was caught speeding on Montauk Highway, near Baiting Hollow Road, in East Hampton at 45 mph in a 30 mph zone on Sunday at 3:20 a.m. He was released on his own recognizance later that morning.

• Juan J. Rijfkogel, 21, of the Bronx, was arrested on Montauk Highway in the Plaza on Sunday at about 3:20 a.m. Police said he had no head lights on at the time. He was released on his own recognizance.