East Hampton Town police made an arrest Saturday in the December fire at East Hampton Indoor Tennis. 


Scott A. McKallip, a 56-year-old East Hampton Village man who had violated an order of protection brought against him by the owners of the tennis club, has been charged was third-degree arson, a felony.


In a statement, police said he was arrested “for his role in the Dec. 22, 2018, fire at the East Hampton Indoor Tennis facility that was deemed an arson by investigators.” 


Through an investigation with Suffolk County arson detectives, town police said they made the arrest following what they called an unrelated larceny arrest that occurred the same date.


Police called in arson detectives soon after the East Hampton Fire Department extinguished the 5 a.m. blaze on the Daniel’s Hole Road property. An automatic fire alarm summoned a fire chief, who found heavy smoke coming from the building, which was used as a reception area for the tennis club. A sprinkler system helped to squelch the fire, before too much damage was done to the building. 


Police said at the time that it appeared “some sort of accelerant” was used. 


The tennis club is located on the same property as the Clubhouse, which has bowling lanes, a bar and restaurant, and an arcade. Scott Rubinstein is the managing partner of the facility.


The next morning, Mr. McKallip, who was supposed to stay away from the Rubensteins’ home and businesses, was seen by an employee at the complex. He had previously sent Mr. Rubenstein’s adult daughter, who works at the businesses, threatening messages on Facebook. He was charged first in Dec. 7 on a charge of aggravated harassment, a misdemeanor, and an order of protection was put in place. He had been free on $300 bail. 


On the morning of Dec. 23, when he was seen in the parking lot at the Clubhouse, he was arrested for trespass and violating the court order. It came to light during an interview with him that he had also violated the court order on Dec. 21 at about 6 p.m., less than 12 hours before the fire. 


He posted $500 bail on Dec. 24 on the new charges. 


Mr. McKallip is set to be arraigned in East Hampton Town Justice Court on Sunday morning. 


The investigation is ongoing and police are asking anyone with information to call detectives at 631-537-7575. All calls will be kept confidential.

A man accused in December of killing his aunt's dog pleaded guilty Friday morning in Suffolk County court, even though the judge made no sentencing promises. 

Jose J. Galvez-Garcia, who turned 22 while behind bars, faces as much as two years in prison on a charge of aggravated animal cruelty, a Class E felony under the State Agriculture and Markets Law. His East Hampton attorney, Stephen Grossman, submitted material to the judge in the hope of a more lenient sentence, such as probation. Jacob Kubetz, the assistant district attorney handling the case for Suffolk County D.A. Tim Sini's Enhanced Prosecution Bureau, said the maximum would be recommended. 

Acting State Supreme Court Justice Mark Cohen said he would review the material before sentencing on May 14. 

Through a Spanish translator, Mr. Galvez-Garcia admitted in court that he killed his aunt's dog, a companion animal under the law, on Dec. 2, 2018. Mr. Kubetz went one step further and asked him the dog's name.

"Simba," Mr. Galvez-Garcia said. 

He had confessed to East Hampton Town police that he kidnapped the 4-year-old cockapoo from its yard on Thomas Avenue in East Hampton because he was angry with his aunt. He then drove to a secluded area off Breeze Hill Road near Three Mile Harbor in Springs and choked and repeatedly stabbed the dog with a knife until it died.

After arriving at his mother's house, Mr. Galvez-Garcia was acting strange and said he had been at the beach. His mother noticed a dent in the car, blood, and found dog hair inside it. They knew Mr. Galvez-Garcia's aunt's dog was missing. Family members searched the beach parking area where Mr. Galvez-Garcia said he had been. The dog's mutilated carcass was found in the woods about 50 feet from the road, police said.

During a police interview, Mr. Galvez-Garcia admitted he tried to snap the dog’s neck and choke it, and then stabbed it with a knife from his mother’s kitchen to make sure it was dead.

However, when Mr. Kubetz asked him Friday if he had intentionally killed the dog, Mr. Galvez-Garcia said, "Not intentionally." 

"Did you kill the dog?" Mr. Kubetz then asked.

"Yes," Mr. Galvez-Garcia said as he stood handcuffed and swaying back and forth. 

"Did you stab the dog with a knife? Did you strangle it?"

"Yes," he said. 

The judge stopped the proceedings so he could review the statute for clarification of whether Mr. Galvez-Garcia had to say he had intentionally killed the dog.

"A person is guilty of aggravated cruelty to animals when, with no justifiable purpose, he or she intentionally kills or intentionally causes serious physical injury to a companion animal with aggravated cruelty," the law states. 

The judge and Mr. Kubetz questioned him further. "The dog was not attacking you or anything at that time, was it?" Mr. Kubetz asked.

"No," was the answer. 

Judge Cohen asked him if in a variety of ways whether he wanted to withdraw his not guilty plea and if he understood the possible ramifications. Pleading guilty to a felony could have an impact on his immigration status, as he is from El Salvador and not a United States citizen. Mr. Grossman has said his client is here on a green card. He could be subject to deportation proceedings. 

Mr. Galvez-Garcia said he understood, and he was taken back to the Suffolk County jail to await sentencing. 

Outside court, Mr. Grossman was asked why his client decided to plead guilty four months after the incident.

"The judge having made no promises, there didn't appear to be another choice," he said.

"This individual, without any cause or reason, killed an innocent, defenseless animal," Mr. Sini, the D.A., said in a statement. "This kind of cruelty is inexcusable and will not be tolerated by my office." 

A 56-year-old Sag Harbor man was arrested Wednesday on charges of sexually abusing a child in Springs in November, according to East Hampton Town police. 

Police said school officials contacted them in January when the child disclosed the abuse to a teacher after watching an educational video on when to report touching by an adult. 

Following an investigation, Juan M. Bacuilima, who used to live in Springs but recently moved to Sag Harbor, was charged with sexual abuse in the first degree, a felony, and endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor. He faces seven years in jail. 

Police did not disclose the relationship between Mr. Bacuilima and the child. 

At his arraignment in East Hampton Town Justice Court on Thursday morning, Rudy Migliore, a Suffolk County assistant district attorney, said that Mr. Bacuilima had inappropriately touched a 10-year-old girl. 

Matt D'Amato, a Legal Aid Society attorney representing Mr. Bacuilima, tried to stop the assistant district attorney from providing details of the case in open court by waiving the public reading.

"I'm entitled to speak to the strength of the people's case," Mr. Migliore said. Justice Lisa R. Rana let him continue. 

Mr. Migliore said that Mr. Bacuilima had admitted to police that he had touched the girl for "one or two minutes" and that he had asked her if she liked it. According to his confession as read by Mr. Migliore, she said, " 'No, don't touch that.' I'm very embarrassed for what I did."  

Mr. D'Amato discounted the admission, noting that his client speaks Spanish and he did not see a certificate of interpretation included with the alleged confession. 

Mr. Migliore asked for $75,000 cash bail or $150,000 bond because Mr. Bacuilima has had several addresses over the years and "tenuous employment." Mr. Bacuilima said through an interpreter and his attorney that he had lived in East Hampton for 20 years and had worked at a garden center for 15 years. His most recent job, held for one week before his arrest, was with an insulation company the name of which he had a hard time telling the interpreter. 

Mr. D'Amato said the assistant district attorney's bail request was not only unreasonable, but unnecessary. He said his client had tried to turn himself in on Wednesday at 9 a.m. only to leave for lunch and then return later when he was arrested. He has no prior criminal record and no longer lives at the same address as the child. Mr. D'Amato asked for $5,000 bail. 

Justice Rana set bail at $50,000, which was not immediately posted. 

A temporary order of protection was issued for the alleged victim. Mr. Bacuilima is to stay away from her and her family and refrain from any and all contact, including through a third party or on social media, Justice Rana said. He is due back in court on April 9.

This article has been updated since it was first published. 

Two men armed with guns tied up a man inside his house in Springs and demanded cash in the early morning hours on Thursday, East Hampton Town police said.

Detectives are investigating the home invasion, which occurred at 13 Norfolk Street at 2:58 a.m. The two men wore masks and hooded sweatshirts and had handguns, police said. They forced their way into the house through a locked basement door. 

"Richard Stevenson, 56, had his hands tied behind his back and was held at gunpoint while the men ransacked the home before fleeing the residence with unknown proceeds," police said in a press release. 

Mr. Stevenson was not hurt. He was able to free himself and call 911. 

Anyone with information has been asked to call the East Hampton Town Police Department at 631-537-7575. All calls will be kept confidential.

Correction: The address where the home invasion happened was Norfolk Street in Springs, not Norfolk Drive, as was first reported.

The Montauk Friends of Erin St. Patrick's Day Parade on Sunday saw beautiful weather and, according to East Hampton Town Police Chief Michael Sarlo, a calm crowd.

"The parade was very orderly, and the crowds were quite compliant this year," Chief Sarlo said in an email on Tuesday. "It was definitely a family-friendly day in Montauk, with the best weather we have had in years, and a nice-size crowd."

Joe Bloecker, a representative of the Montauk Friends of Erin, estimated that 20,000 to 25,000 people attended.

Town police made four arrests on Sunday, one just before the parade started that resulted in a misdemeanor drug possession charge for an 18-year-old from West Islip, and one on a misdemeanor assault charge following a fight at the Long Island Rail Road station as a crowd was boarding a westbound train. Police made two drunken-driving arrests in the late afternoon and early evening.

About 100 officers from 12 departments, not including the contingent from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority police, helped patrol the parade, Chief Sarlo said. "There were no fights or disorderly conduct issues during the parade, and we only issued a handful of town ordinance summons on the day," he said.

The teen, whose name was not released because he is eligible for youthful offender status, allegedly had a backpack with eight glass cartridges containing a brown liquid substance that later tested positive for marijuana and four green-and-yellow gummy edibles. He was arrested on Fort Pond Road around 11:10 a.m. and released on $100 bail the same day.

Chief Sarlo reported that approximately 1,500 riders had arrived on the L.I.R.R. for the festivities. Two extra eastbound trains were run ahead of the parade's start, and one extra westbound train afterward.

As riders boarded for points west, the fight broke out around 5 p.m. Tristan A. Johnson-Weigle, 21, of Shirley allegedly punched another man in the face and slammed his head against the wall, causing a fractured nose and laceration to the back of the man's head, which required medical attention. Mr. Johnson-Weigle was charged with third-degree assault, a misdemeanor, and held overnight for arraignment. Justice Lisa R. Rana released him on $250 bail.

There were no reported problems on the eastbound trains before the parade, Chief Sarlo said.

The two charged with misdemeanor D.W.I. were Kevin P. Sabo, 28, of Westhampton Beach and Miguel A. Martinez, 21, of Mastic Beach.

Mr. Sabo was involved in an accident on South Essex Street near Montauk Highway around 4:55 p.m. Justice Rana released him on his own recognizance following arraignment on Monday.

Mr. Martinez was arrested after police saw him make an unsafe turn in a 2007 Hyundai headed east on Montauk Highway near South Emery Street around 6 p.m. He appeared to be intoxicated when police pulled him over, they said. Police also said that his New York State driver's license was forged. In addition to misdemeanor D.W.I., he was charged with possession of a forged instrument in the second degree, a felony.

Justice Rana arraigned him the next day and released him on $400 bail.

 

Partial remains of William Maerov, one of the three passengers who died along with the pilot in a small-plane crash off Amagansett in June, washed up on an ocean beach over the winter and were positively identified earlier this month, East Hampton Town police said on Friday. 

Mr. Maerov, 22, was aboard a Piper PA-31 Navajo that crashed into the ocean during a storm on the afternoon of June 2. His grandparents Bonnie and Ben Krupinski were in the plane with him. Jon Dollard, a 47-year-old pilot from Hampton Bays, was also killed. They were returning to East Hampton Airport after a quick trip to Newport, R.I., to pick up Mr. Maerov's sister, Charlotte Maerov, from school. She returned on a different aircraft that landed safely in East Hampton.  

The bodies of the Krupinskis, both 70, were retrieved from the water soon after the accident. Police searched for the remaining victims for five days — as much as they could, given difficult sea conditions — before they located the majority of the wreckage 40 to 45 feet underwater about a mile off Atlantic Avenue Beach in Amagansett, along with Mr. Dollard's body. 

Police called off the search for Mr. Maerov 11 days after the accident. The family and police had asked that anything found on the beach that could possibly be related to the crash be reported to the police.

Within a few days in January, police received reports of skeletal remains on the beach near Indian Wells Highway, not far from the crash site, according to Detective Sgt. Dan Toia. Two bones were sent to the Suffolk County medical examiner's office for DNA comparisons, he said.

Police received word in early March that the medical examiner had made a positive identification, Detective Toia said. 

"Hopefully, this will give the family some closure in this tragedy," Chief Michael Sarlo said. "We send our thoughts and prayers to their entire family." 

Mr. Maerov's father, Lance Maerov, declined to comment on Friday. "He could connect with 80-year-olds, he could connect with 8-month-olds, and everyone in between," he had said at his son's funeral service in June, which was a service for his grandparents, as well. "Connecting with people was his gift."

Mr. Maerov, a graduate of the St. Andrew's School in Middletown, Del., was in his third year at Georgetown University. Tad Roach, the headmaster of St. Andrew's, was among the speakers at the funeral. "Willie had a profound appreciation of the miracles around him," he said, and "expanded the definition of what it means to be a family."

Charlotte Maerov said at the time that her brother "became a man with the biggest heart."

Their mother, Laura Krupinski, died last month in Hampton Bays at the age of 53. 

The National Transportation Safety Board issued a preliminary report a month after the accident, but its investigation into the cause continues. 

Nearly 40 local musicians and owners of music venues told the East Hampton Town Board Thursday that proposed amendments to town code governing the issuance and potential revocation of music entertainment permits are draconian, mean-spirited, and even cruel and unusual.

But as Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc said before the first had delivered remarks, many of their concerns "may not be founded."

Proposed amendments would make music entertainment permits valid for one year, when they currently renew automatically, and would allow the town clerk to deny approval of a permit based on two or more prior convictions relating to any section of town code pertaining to music entertainment, fire prevention, special events, noise, or zoning within the previous 36 months. Applicants could appeal, but only in writing and within 30 days of the denial, to a committee comprising emergency management, Building Department and Code Enforcement, and fire and police officials.

Also added is the decree that a permit does not confer an additional or accessory use, or expansion of an existing or accessory use. Another change would require presentation of a certificate of occupancy or other evidence that a restaurant or bar is an approved use of the property, and information as to whether an establishment's owner has been convicted of any violation of town code in the prior 36 months. Current rules stipulate 18 months without a code violation conviction. Establishments seeking music entertainment permits would have to provide a floor and seating plan including the location of the entertainment. Lastly, the proposed revisions include the provision that the permits may be subject to a fee, and the board may establish or amend that amount. Music permits are now free; a proposed schedule sets a $100 fee starting next year.

The town board's discussion prompted pushback long before the hearing, with musicians and business interests taking to social media and mailing lists to exhort those who might be affected to make their voices heard. And for some two hours, they did.

Many in the contingent that spoke to the board are Montauk residents. The proposed legislation, said Lynn Blumenfeld, a vocalist and business owner, "feels really anti-Montauk." The hamlet, she noted, now attracts national touring artists. "Montauk's got crowds," she said. "We're not going to get rid of the crowds," but local people and businesses will be hurt, she said, if restaurants and bars that host live music are no longer permitted to do so.

As written, said Nancy Atlas, another Montauk musician, a business could lose its music entertainment permit for reasons unrelated to noise, such as parking, overcrowding, or "if your dishwasher . . . goes on a bender and gets a D.W.I."

Mr. Van Scoyoc said that was not accurate, but Ms. Atlas said that she would take whatever recourse necessary should the laws be amended and result in a loss of performance opportunities.

"I see and have respect for where this comes from," Inda Eaton said of the proposed amendments, but added that the board should beware of unintended consequences. She and others said that an unelected committee charged with reviewing appeals of a permit's denial should concern everyone.

Ellen Dioguardi said that "live music invigorates the local economy," benefiting not just venues and performers but other businesses. Extolling the positive attributes of music, she asked, rhetorically, "Why don't we outlaw sunsets? . . . What are we thinking? Let's embrace our legendary local talent."

Ralph Pericelli of Montauk, a retired New York City firefighter who plays in two bands, recalled the Concert for New York City, held weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack in New York City, in which many of his colleagues were killed. "We felt alive that night," he said. The clients he works with as a mental health counselor are uplifted by music, he said. "It saddens me that we are talking about restricting or even stopping music."

Dianne Leverrier, an attorney and amateur musician, told the board that the proposed legislation does not comply with New York State law and would result in lengthy legal challenges. Another attorney, Deborah Choron of Montauk, said that the proposed amendments "will not solve any of Montauk's problems. Rather, giving the clerk such broad discretion . . . will be disastrous." The town clerk, she said, could cherry-pick businesses for approval or denial of a permit. "This law's vagueness is susceptible to constitutional challenge," she said. "Ultimately, if enacted, every single business will be under the thumb of the town clerk and committee." The proposals are misguided and will not have their intended outcome, she said.

"Is live music really the big problem in this town," asked Thomas Muse, "when I see direct sewage being discharged on the beach?" The proposal is "a cold shower on the short-term seasonal economy in this tourist town," he said.

On and on it went, the supervisor, who is also a musician, sometimes exchanging asides with speakers with whom he has performed. Laraine Creegan, executive director of the Montauk Chamber of Commerce, called the proposal "one more example of government overreach for no apparent reason. We feel it is unfair to the businesses and local musicians affected." Paul Monte, chairman of the town's business advisory committee, said that the summer season is too close at hand to change the rules now.

Before the last notes of outrage had subsided, Mr. Van Scoyoc told the gathering that, "We all value live music in East Hampton," including his colleagues on the board. "We have no intention of shutting it down. We've heard you loud and clear that you have concerns. . . . We're not going to let that happen."

Later, he mused that the town might benefit from a committee comprising musicians, akin to the East Hampton Arts Council. "I respect everyone in the room for coming out. Your views on these may be slightly different from my own," he said, but the meeting had provided "a really good opportunity to recognize the importance of music in our lives, in our town, and we will certainly consider all those."

Contrary to several accusations made earlier in the evening, the board "had no intention of voting on this tonight," he said. "We will certainly take up the issue again at a work session." The board, he said, would endeavor to "figure out how can do what we need to do to address the concerns we have without harming those who may be affected in a collateral way." 

A 21-year-old landscaper who kidnapped and killed his aunt’s dog did so because he was upset with his aunt, a prosecutor alleged in East Hampton Town Justice Court on Tuesday.

East Hampton Town police said Jose J. Galvez-Garcia, who most recently lived on Woodbine Drive in Springs, took the 4-year-old dog, named Simba, from the front yard of his aunt’s house on Thomas Avenue in East Hampton on Sunday evening. He then drove to a secluded area off Breeze Hill Road near Three Mile Harbor in Springs and choked and repeatedly stabbed the dog until it died, police said.

At Mr. Galvez-Garcia’s arraignment Tuesday afternoon, Stacy Skorupa, an assistant district attorney, said he had driven to his mother and stepfather’s house “acting weird and erratic” at around 7 or 8 p.m. on Sunday. They told police he seemed upset and said he had been on the beach. They noticed blood on the inside of the jacket he was wearing, but he said he had spilled a Coke. His mother then looked outside and noticed a dent in his car. Moving closer, she saw dog hair inside it, Ms. Skorupa said in court.

His stepfather called Mr. Galvez-Garcia’s uncle because he knew they had been worried about the missing dog, Ms. Skorupa said. Family members went to search the beach parking area where Mr. Galvez-Garcia said he had been. Simba’s mutilated carcass was found in the woods about 50 feet from the road, police said.

During a police interview later, Mr. Galvez-Garcia admitted he tried to snap the dog’s neck and choke it, and then stabbed it with a knife from his mother’s kitchen to make sure it was dead. A veterinarian who examined the carcass determined the dog’s neck had indeed been broken, and Mr. Galvez-Garcia was charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, a felony.

He told police he had taken a shovel from his stepfather’s landscaping trailer to bury the dog, but was too drunk to finish doing so, though he had started to dig a hole. Police found the shovel near the scene. They also confiscated the bloody jacket and the dog’s collar, which was found on the roadside where Mr. Galvez-Garcia had thrown it. He also told police he had tossed the knife out his car window.

According to a press release, Mr. Galvez-Garcia said “he carried out the act because he was angry with the way he had been treated.” What he was angry about was not explained to Justice Lisa R. Rana during his arraignment Tuesday afternoon. During the arraignment, Ms. Skorupa, the assistant district attorney, said Mr. Galvez-Garcia had slept on a couch at his mother and stepfather’s house on Cedar Drive in Springs in the days leading up to the incident, but was living in his car for the most part after having been kicked out of a rented room in a house on Woodbine Drive.

A native of El Salvador, Mr. Galvez-Garcia has been in the United States on a temporary visa and has been living in East Hampton for about three years, Ms. Skorupa said. He had worked for his stepfather’s landscaping business, but no longer does so, she said.

Ms. Skorpua called Mr. Galvez-Garcia a flight risk and asked that his bail be set at $50,000. His attorney, Cynthia Darrell, said her client has no prior convictions and pointed out that despite the allegations he was entitled to a trial. She asked for minimal bail.

Justice Rana set bail at $25,000, or $50,000 bond. She said the defendant was “very transient” and noted that several members of his extended family — his aunt, uncle, mother, and stepfather — had sought orders of protection. “This is very concerning to the court that he could leave the country,” she said.

The order of protection for his mother and stepfather requires him to stay away from their home, business, and places of employment for one year. At their request, he would be allowed to communicate with them, in part so they could visit him if he remained in custody. The order of protection for his aunt and uncle requires him to stay away and have no communication with them for one year. Mr. Galvez-Garcia quietly answered yes when asked through a translator whether he understood the terms of the orders.

He is in the custody of the Suffolk County sheriff’s office, and is due back in court tomorrow. If he is not indicted by then, he could be released on his own recognizance.

Detectives have asked that anyone with information call police at 631-537-7575. All calls will be kept confidential. 

A 21-year-old Springs man was arrested on animal cruelty charges after a dog's badly mutilated body was found Monday morning in a wooded area at the end of Breeze Hill Road in East Hampton.

East Hampton Town police said that Jose J. Galvez-Garcia, who lives on Cedar Drive in Springs, took a 4-year-old Cockapoo named Simba from a relative's property in East Hampton on Sunday evening. He drove to a secluded area on Breeze Hill Road and choked and repeatedly stabbed the dog to death, police said.

Simba's body was left in the woods about 50 feet from the road.

Later, during a police interview, Mr. Galvez-Garcia told police "he carried out the act because he was angry with the way he had been treated by a family member who owned the dog," according to a press release.

The dog's owners had been searching for it since it went missing on Sunday; one of them found it on Monday morning.

Mr. Galvez-Garcia was charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, a felony. He is being held for arraignment, set to take place in East Hampton Town Justice Court on Tuesday afternoon.

Detectives have asked that anyone with information call police at 631-537-7575. All calls will be kept confidential.

 

When it comes to deer management, East Hampton Town and Village have considered everything — from sterilization and tagging deer to controlled hunts, contraceptives for does, and feeding stations where deer rub against insecticide-soaked posts to access food and thereby kill the ticks they carry. Meanwhile, the villages of Saga­ponack and Southampton have proposed limiting deer fences only to land in agricultural production. 

Not long ago, when Sagaponack asked the Town of Southampton to hold a managed deer hunt on a few town-owned properties to reduce the herd, some sites were approved while others, such as the Poxabogue Golf Course, were not. 

Jay Schneiderman, Southampton Town supervisor, said that was because it seemed “unfair, like shooting fish in a barrel.”

The current practice of letting each municipality set its own agenda on deer management obviously complicates the process. Even within each hamlet, the deer debate goes round and round, often traveling the same rutted ground: To fence or not to fence? Should there be hired bow hunters, small teams of professional rifle hunters to do surgical strikes? Should the culling of deer be prohibited except in the recreational hunting season? Is sedating and sterilizing deer humane or cruel? Residents sometimes ask themselves whether they are pro-Bambi or Nimby-istas, in other words, those who say, “Not in my back yard.” Should a deer die because it eats your hydrangeas?

One of the few things that all sides agree on is more should be done to control the deer herd. But when you go on a listening tour and invite members of the various factions involved — town officials, animal-rights advocates, hired hunters, local homeowners, and medical professionals — to explain why more isn’t being done, the reasons become clear. Charges fly. Positions harden. Frustrations bubble up. There are hot disagreements about even the most basic facts. And the debate perennially snaps into something like this.

A Homeowner/Animal Activist: 

Bill Crain, a City University of New York psychology professor, is president of the 15-year-old East Hampton Group for Wildlife and a part-time resident of Montauk who runs an upstate New York animal sanctuary where he and his wife, Ellen, a retired physician and fellow vegan, live with about 100 animals.

Mr. Crain has been arrested 11 times in different advocacy demonstrations. “Twice for trying to protect trees in Teaneck (New Jersey, where he used to live), and nine times for trying to stop bear hunting,” Mr. Crain said in an interview Saturday. He has protested shark hunts in Montauk, suggested if speeding laws here were strictly enforced, or motorists drove more slowly, collisions with deer, which he said have averaged 473 a year in the past two years in East Hampton Town and Village, would be reduced. He’s also staged several hunger strikes to stop deer hunting in East Hampton.

“We had the hunger strikes the first week of January for several years, usually for three days or so, and a couple of us, mostly my wife and I, sat out in front of Town Hall in the cold weather,” Mr. Crain said. “Our group has also had rallies. We’ve sued the town. In January, we’re trying to get them to revoke this weekend hunting idea that’s been approved. There’s no possible relief for the deer. It’s heartbreaking. We’d like to get a couple sanctuaries where deer can go and at least have some safety, some peace.”

According to Mr. Crain, “the town board has taken the position that the best way to handle any problems with the deer is to kill them. And we feel each deer’s life is precious. Each deer has feelings and a family and wants to live just as much as we do.”

“In our view, the town takes an immoral position. The town has been irresponsible. They act as if the deer, as if lives other than human lives, don’t matter at all.”

Mr. Crain said making the case that the town’s position is immoral has always been tough. “This current town board is perhaps the worst we’ve experienced. They have the most pro-hunting bias of any we’ve experienced. East Hampton Town has a wildlife advisory board and we have a seat, but we have difficulty even keeping a person in there. It’s like sending someone into the lion’s den. We’ll keep trying to make our case.” Sighing slightly, he added, “I guess a lot of people have jobs where they feel like they’re fighting uphill.”

A Hired Gun:

“When it comes to these towns’ deer management efforts, it’s hard to remove stupidity from the table,” said Dr. Anthony DeNicola, who has a master’s degree from the Yale School of Forestry and a Ph.D. from Purdue University in wildlife ecology. A deer management professional, he is the founder of White Buffalo Inc., a Connecticut-based firm that has managed professional hunts and deer sterilization efforts in East Hampton Village, North Haven, and elsewhere across the country. 

“The debate is like ‘Groundhog Day.’ And I’ve been living inside the circle for 25 years,” Mr. DeNicola said. Speaking in a telephone interview last weekend from Quebec, he said, “The biggest problem is pretty fundamental, and it probably applies to many issues: You either have strong community leadership or you don’t. I don’t know of any politician in this country whose re-election has been impacted by deciding to manage deer. But they’re politicians. And many of them are pretty soft. The other factor is there’s no magic solution. It’s been a myth for 50 years that [recreational] hunters control the deer population. The only real way to do effective, significant deer reduction is with professional hunts by experts. It’s been proven. But these places, they want me to come in and say, ‘Here’s this magic other thing. We’re going to do this, and your problem will be solved!’ Everyone wants to have this magic vaccine that any old lady can get off a shelf, get a dart gun and dart something in the backyard, and all the deer will stop producing babies. And that’s just not happening.” 

Mr. DeNicola had some advice: “So you have to pick and choose from a spectrum of desirable to less-desirable options, and none of them are perfect. We have made abysmally small progress in vaccine technology. Contracept the deer? It doesn’t last long enough. I’m doing these surgically invasive doe sterilization projects to research and understand how reproduction inhibition would impact the deer population. But it’s an immense undertaking to capture a very significant part of the deer population.”

Asked whether such a huge undertaking would lead everyone back to pondering again some significant hunting effort to cull the herd, Mr. DeNicola said, “Right. And there’s no place I’ve ever been, which is many places across the country and across the world, that the problem can’t be solved. When I’m in these public meetings, I can whittle all of it down and get you to what it costs, what gets accomplished, give you all the facts and the data. But then I have numerous communities, like those on the East End, that then say, ‘We don’t have the money.’ So you know what I say? I say, ‘Okay. No problem. But tell your public, What we are doing, it’s a stopgap.’ Or I just tell them, ‘Fine.’ And I walk away.” 

“After 28 years of this, I’m happy to come help you if you’re serious. But if you want to live with your deer and bitch about it every year, I don’t care. I go home to my place in Connecticut, and I don’t have a deer problem and it really doesn’t affect me much at all.”

The Medical Professional:

“Right now I take care of 489 patients that have the alpha gal meat allergy from the lone star tick. At this time of year, when people are having exposure to the tick larvae in the late fall, it’s not uncommon for me to see an additional three to six new cases a week,” said Dr. Erin McGintee, a board-certified allergist and immunologist who works at ENT and Allergy Associates in Southampton, sits on the physicians’ advisory board for the Tick-Borne Disease Resource Center at Stony Brook University Hospital, and is an appointed member of the Suffolk County Board of Health. “I don’t know the answer to deer control. But I firmly believe something has to be done,” Dr. McGintee said, adding that the need was obvious and “it’s easy to connect the dots.”

“Clearly, if we didn’t have as big of a deer problem, we wouldn’t have as big of a tick problem, and I think the same argument extends to all of the tick-related illnesses,” Dr. McGintee said. “I think we all can agree the exploding deer population makes it harder to avoid. It’s very hard to prevent people from getting bitten, and it’s usually the bite you don’t see that makes you sick because it goes untreated. This is a sneaky disease. Also, the more bites you get, the worse it gets. And yet, it’s just such a challenge to make any progress on this because for every person that does understand how dire it is, there’s somebody else saying, ‘God forbid you want to sterilize a deer or try to put insect repellent on them.’ ”

And what was Dr. McGintee’s response? “Just because we’re interested in reducing the deer population, that doesn’t necessarily mean we’re anti-animal. I mean, I love those deer. But I also feel sad for them. They’re competing against themselves. There’s just too many. They don’t have quality of life. You can look at them and see they’re stunted, they’re not growing normally. Our community can’t support it. The ecosystem and forests can’t support it. The lone star tick is becoming a bigger problem than the regular tick in our area. It’s far more prevalent at this moment. Unless we do something, all of this is just going to be a bigger and bigger issue. And it’s important to get that word out there. Something has to be done.” 

The Town Official: 

Jay Schneiderman was the supervisor of East Hampton for four years and became Southampton Town supervisor in 2016. In an interview this week from the campaign trail, where he’s running as the Democratic candidate for Suffolk County comptroller, Mr. Schneiderman said, “The deer issue is always going to be a big question for the local community. But balancing the needs, it’s not always going to be easy. And I consider myself fairly moderate on the issue.”

“I’m not anti-hunter, and I’m aware of all the various other issues — the damage to crops and forests and landscaping, cars striking deer on the highways,” Mr. Schneiderman said. “I recognize that a lot of people have contracted Lyme disease and all these other tick-borne illnesses. And that is serious. On the other hand, you have people that feel compassion for these creatures. And I do too. They are beautiful. No one wants to see an animal suffer. So what do you do?”

Mr. Schneiderman tells a story about how his girlfriend spotted a man standing on their street the other day looking off at something in the distance. One hour passed, two hours passed, and the stranger was still there.

“She finally went outside and said, ‘Sir, can I help you with something?’ and he told her, ‘I’m waiting for a deer that I shot with an arrow to die.’ ” Mr. Schneiderman said. “That’s too long for me for an animal to suffer. So if bow hunting is going to be the deer management program of choice somewhere, I think it’s fair to ask questions like whether it’s a shooting-fish-in-the-barrel kind of thing. And is it fair? Is it ethical? But people can’t even agree on the need to kill the deer. So you do see it all.” 

According to Mr. Schneiderman, “Some of these people say they don’t want to see a deer die — and then they go home and eat a hamburger. So there’s a little inconsistency to me there. And every once in a while, somebody will mention introducing a deer predator. And that’s another conversation that never goes anywhere, either, because someone else usually points out, ‘Uh. We can’t introduce bobcats without also fearing for our children.’ ”

And the deer debate resumes. . . .