Out-of-Court Deal Irks Town Judge Rana

An attorney from Shoreham received some stern words from East Hampton Town Justice Lisa R. Rana before she agreed to a plea bargain for his client that had been worked out with the district attorney’s office without consulting her first.

Chad A. Leat, 58, was arrested on a drunken-driving charge by East Hampton Village police on Nov. 15. His attorney, Austin M. Manghan III, had negotiated for Mr. Leat to perform 80 hours of community service in exchange for the charge being reduced from misdemeanor driving while intoxicated to driving with ability impaired by alcohol, a simple violation.

Mr. Leat, a former chairman of Citigroup, had already completed the 80 hours service by the time he showed up at the East Hampton Town Justice Court last Thursday.

“You don’t make a deal without bringing it to the court,” Justice Rana said to Mr. Manghan and Sean McDonnell, of the district attorney’s office. She called the two men to the bench, with Mr. Leat standing behind them, waiting for them to work matters out.

“How clear do I have to make it? Write a letter with the proposed disposition,” Justice Rana said to Mr. Manghan. “That’s not much to ask. Notify the court so that I at least have the opportunity to say yea or nay,” she said.

“Ultimately, I have to decide if a disposition is appropriate, or not,” she told Mr. Leat. “You hire an attorney, you expect to receive proper advice. I will not hold it against you.” She then granted the deal the attorneys had worked out.

The deal was a bit unusual in that, under normal circumstances, District Attorney Thomas Spota’s office does not grant reductions in charges in drunken-driving cases where the defendant refused to take the Intoxilyzer 9000 breath test at police headquarters, as Mr. Leat did on Nov. 15 after calling an attorney.

However, while Mr. Leat refused to take the test at headquarters, he had taken the field breath test, which produced a reading of .11 of 1 percent alcohol in the blood, a number low enough that the D.A.’s office usually grants the reduced plea bargain to first-time offenders like Mr. Leat.

In addition to the D.W.A.I. charge, Mr. Leat also pleaded guilty to a single moving violation. Justice Rana ordered him to pay $1,003 in fines and fees and suspended his license for 90 days.