Drivers Snared in Saturday-Night Dragnet

Another Saturday-night police dragnet to snare drunken drivers helped lead to the arrest of defendants from a wide variety of professions.

Marco A. Apude, 55, a theater productions manager, was stopped on Spring Close Highway in East Hampton after accelerating so quickly that the tires on his 2001 Honda burned rubber, according to East Hampton Town police. At headquarters, his breath test produced a reading of .16, police said. Rob Archer, an assistant district attorney, asked for bail of $300, and Justice Lisa R. Rana asked the defendant if he could post that amount.

“I don’t have my credit card with me here. It is in my house, which is two blocks away,” the Pantigo Road resident responded. “It’s a high reading, but you have ties in this community,” Justice Rana replied, setting him free without bail.

The late-model Volkswagen Eos driven by Ashley Navarro, a trainer of show horses and their riders, was clocked at 46 miles per hour on Main Street in East Hampton Village, where the speed limit is 30. Her breath test reportedly produced a .14 reading, and bail was set at $300, which was posted. Ms. Navarro told the court she was based in Annville, Pa., but was working in Southampton for the summer.

Two tradesmen were arrested during the sweep, which ran from 8 p.m. Saturday to 4 a.m. Sunday. One of them, Wilson H. Mendez Gordillo of Springs, 34, idled in the middle of Spruce Street, where he lives, for an extended period of time, police said, before his 1998 Ford pickup drove off on the wrong side of the road. The officer who followed, emergency lights flashing, reported that the pickup continued on anyway, making two turns without signaling before coming to a stop.

Because the defendant already had a conviction for drunken driving — just this past March, in front of Justice Rana — he was charged with a felony. Mr. Archer asked that bail be set at $3,000.

Justice Rana asked Mr. Mendez Gordillo if he had anything to say. “Can you make it lower?” he asked. “Actually, no, I’m going higher. Bail will be $5,000,” she said. Family members posted the amount later Sunday.

Christopher L. Cabrera, a landscaper, 20, driving a 2001 Jeep on Cedar Street in East Hampton, was pulled over after swerving across the double yellow line, police said. His charge was different from the rest; he was accused of driving while high on drugs. Back at headquarters, he consented to have his blood drawn; the results of the drug test will not be known until his next court appearance. He was released without bail.

Two white-collar workers had the lowest readings of the night. Erin E. Cullen of Brooklyn, 30, who works in digital advertising, was stopped in downtown Montauk early Sunday for driving without headlights, while Christopher M. Giarraputo, 46, who splits his time between New York and East Hampton and is in the construction industry, was stopped at a checkpoint set up by the task force on Napeague. Both had readings of .08, just high enough to justify a charge of driving while intoxicated. Each was freed without bail, but with a future date on Justice Rana’s very busy criminal calendar.

The arrest of Joseph Michael Giuntoli, founder and president of the Chelsea-based Joey Showroom, which hosts collections for leading designers in Los Angeles, New York, and Miami, was unrelated to the sweep. East Hampton Village police said his late-model Porsche had been clocked at 51 m.p.h. in a 30 m.p.h. stretch of Pantigo Road, near Accabonac Road, when he began making a series of turns without signaling, starting at Accabonac and ending up in front of police headquarters on Cedar Street. There, he consented to take the breath test, which police said produced a reading of .13.

Mr. Giuntoli, 43, was first up Sunday morning in Justice Rana’s crowded courtroom. After suspending his license, she began checking her calendar to set his next court date, while Mr. Giuntoli did the same. “I’m flying to L.A. on the 30th,” he told her, for a fashion show through Aug. 4. Justice Rana gave him a July 28 return date, warning him, “Do not drive.”

Finally, early Tuesday morning, a Shelter Island man, Benjamin Demarchelier, 34, was charged in Montauk. Town police recorded his breath test at .13. Mr. Demarchelier, who told Justice Rana he manages a restaurant in Montauk, was released without bail.

East Hampton Town Police Chief Michael D. Sarlo spoke about Saturday night’s task force effort on Monday. “A total of 15 officers from East End agencies participated,” he said. “Over all, it was a successful, safe, and productive effort. We appreciate the cooperation and continued support of the surrounding agencies in our efforts to keep our roadways safe during this extremely busy time.”

The Stop-D.W.I. task force is funded by the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office.