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Prior Convictions Bring Felony Charges

Thu, 12/21/2023 - 05:15

Shortly after 8 p.m. on Dec. 9, on Abraham’s Path near Asa’s Path in Amagansett, a town police officer pulled over a black 2011 BMW with temporary Alabama license plates and “an exhaust system that was modified to amplify sound.”

Its driver, Bryan Steeven Cuevacalle of East Hampton, 28, reportedly displayed classic signs of intoxication: slurred speech, glassy red eyes, and the smell of alcohol on his breath. He performed poorly on field sobriety tests, police said, and wound up charged with two felony counts of driving while intoxicated, having been previously convicted of the offense in June 2016. In New York State, a prior drunken-driving conviction elevates a new charge to the level of a felony.

Police also found that Mr. Cuevacalle’s temporary Alabama plates had been illegally modified with a black marker, and charged him additionally with third-degree possession of a forged instrument, a misdemeanor. He was held overnight for a morning appearance before Town Justice Lisa Rana, who released him on his own recognizance. Mr. Cuevacalle, who is due back in court on Jan. 10, had not yet hired an attorney as of Tuesday.

Gail Goley of Hampton Bays, 43, was similarly charged on Dec. 4. Police pulled her over on Three Mile Harbor-Hog Creek Road near Boatyard Drive in East Hampton at about 12:45 a.m. that day after allegedly seeing her swerve back and forth across both the fog and double-yellow lines. Ms. Goley, whose prior D.W.I. conviction was in October 2014, failed the roadside tests, police said.

Justice Rana arraigned her later that day and released her on her own recognizance. She too is expected back in court on Jan. 10, when she will be represented by Legal Aid.

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