Southold Blotter: Kentucky man arrested after lunging at hospital nurse with broken chair

A Kentucky man who became verbally abusive toward staff at Eastern Long Island Hospital and threw a wooden chair at a nurse in the emergency room was arrested in late December, police said.

James Martinez, 34, was charged with third-degree menacing and criminal mischief with the intent to cause property damage, both misdemeanors, as well as a violation for second-degree harassment.

Police said Mr. Martinez was intoxicated and picked up a piece of the broken chair and lunged at a nurse who feared for her safety.

The incident occurred Dec. 23 around 7:19 p.m., police said. 

• Two drivers sustained minor injuries in an accident on Route 48 in Southold and were transported to ELIH by members of the Southold and Cutchogue fire departments last Thursday around 12:23 a.m. A Southold man attempting to turn left into a parking lot failed to yield right of way to another driver who was traveling eastbound on Route 48. The second driver collided with the first, causing the Southold man’s vehicle to overturn and hit an unoccupied parked vehicle, police said.

• A Southold woman was scammed after providing Verizon account information to an unknown person claiming to work for the company. She did not suffer any financial loss, according to a police report, but her Verizon account was compromised. Verizon instructed the woman to file a police report in order to retrieve her phone number, which was sold to a third party.

• Police and members of the Cutchogue Fire Department responded to a possible chimney fire last Thursday around 7:36 p.m., after an officer observed smoke billowing from a warehouse on the north end of the Peconic Recycling and Transfer property near Commerce Drive and Depot Lane in Cutchogue. The fire was extinguished and a detective was notified of the incident.

• Approximately $100 was stolen from a register at Alice’s Fish Market in Greenport after a suspect broke a window, police said. The damage from the broken window was $200. The incident was reported early last Thursday morning. No other items were reported missing.

• A driver reportedly fell asleep at the wheel and ran off the roadway, striking a sign and tree along Main Road in Southold last Wednesday. The driver sustained minor injuries in the crash, which occurred around 2:50 a.m.

• An overheated and melted outlet and breaker sparked a minor fire on the side of the Aldo’s Coffee building in Greenport last Tuesday. 

Members of the Greenport Fire Department and Greenport utilities responded and disconnected all lines to the breaker box, according to police. Officers who responded found the outlet and breaker belonged to the village.

• An orange 2016 Ariens Deluxe 30 snowblower valued at $1,500 was reported stolen last Tuesday from the back of a property on Bay Avenue in Mattituck. The owner told police he had last seen the snowblower two to three weeks ago. Police were unable to locate any witnesses or surveillance cameras, but a detective was notified of the incident.

• Someone who found a partially written check in a trash can altered it and cashed it. Police received a report last Monday from the victim, who said she made a mistake while writing the check and threw it out, only to find someone ended up cashing it. A detective was notified.

Those who are named in police reports have not been convicted of any crime or violation. The charges against them may later be reduced or withdrawn, or they may be found innocent.