Skip to main content

A Billy Club in Plain Sight

Thu, 03/31/2022 - 10:58

Late on the afternoon of March 21, an East Hampton Village officer watched Craig Workman, 31, drive a 2021 Mercedes-Benz north on Main Street, cross the double yellow lines, and make an unsafe left turn. As Mr. Workman, an East Hampton resident, was being pulled over, the car smacked into the curb, causing it to stop.

The officer reported that a billy club was in plain sight in the rear of the vehicle. Mr. Workman’s breath smelled strongly of alcohol, his speech was slurred, and he was unsteady on his feet, according to the report. He fumbled for his paperwork, and when asked for the registration handed the officer his “vehicle identification card.” Asked if he’d had anything to drink, he reportedly relied that I had two drinks earlier.

Mr. Workman, who initially refused to submit to a breath test, was charged with driving while intoxicated, and held overnight. At police headquarters, he did take a breath test, which raised the charge to aggravated D.W.I. He was additionally charged with fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, and appeared in East Hampton Town Justice Court the following morning. He is due to return there on April 21.

John Contrerassuscal of Hampton Bays, 34, driving a 2014 Honda, ran a stop sign at the intersection of Atwell Street and Muir Boulevard in East Hampton on the night of March 22, town police reported. His speech was slurred, they said, and he performed poorly on a field sobriety test. During the traffic stop, the officer noted a strong odor of alcohol on Mr. Contrerassuscal’s breath, and that his speech was slurred. He was charged with misdemeanor drunken driving, a first offense, and held for the remainder of the night before being released in the morning on his own recognizance. He is due back in Justice Court on April 20.

A third man charged with D.W.I., Denis Diaz-Gavilanes of East Hampton, 26, was injured early Monday morning when he lost control of his 2011 Honda Pilot on Morris Park Lane in East Hampton and struck a parked vehicle. The car then collided with a mailbox, a fence, bushes, and finally another mailbox, before coming to a halt.

Police found Mr. Diaz-Gavilanes outside the car, which was heavily damaged. His performance on the sobriety tests was poor, they said, and he too faces a first-offense misdemeanor charge of drunken driving. Due to his injuries, he was given an appearance ticket and taken to Stony Brook Southampton Hospital for treatment rather than to court. He is to be arraigned on April 13.

On the Police Logs 12.04.25

A couple flagged down an officer on Jermain Avenue in Sag Harbor late Sunday morning to report that their son had taken their car without permission and has been “using marijuana.”

Dec 4, 2025

Two Intersection Accidents

Two S.U.V.s collided at the intersection of Stephen Hand’s Path and Route 114 on Nov. 24, and a pedestrian was struck in Sag Harbor the next day.

Dec 4, 2025

Volunteers Answer the Call of Duty

“No one wants to get out of bed, having just climbed in. And it’s a really cold night, and it’s windy, and everything else — but you know that everyone else will be feeling the same, and so you go anyway. Everyone jumps in their cars and drives there, and then you deal with whatever is going on.”

Nov 27, 2025

On the Police Logs 11.27.25

A Barry Lane, Springs, man told police that someone claiming to be from Amazon had called him in regard to a $996 charge on his account for an iPhone 16. When he said he didn’t have an Amazon account, he was transferred to someone who identified himself as a Social Security employee, accused him of money laundering, and told him to expect a call from Nassau County police.

Nov 27, 2025

 

Your support for The East Hampton Star helps us deliver the news, arts, and community information you need. Whether you are an online subscriber, get the paper in the mail, delivered to your door in Manhattan, or are just passing through, every reader counts. We value you for being part of The Star family.

Your subscription to The Star does more than get you great arts, news, sports, and outdoors stories. It makes everything we do possible.