Two drivers, a man and a woman, who, according to East Hampton Town police, have been convicted within the past 10 years of driving while intoxicated, were accused of the same crime recently and now face felony D.W.I. charges.
Ihor Sovtan of Northport, 54, was pulled over on Old Montauk Highway near Grant Drive in Montauk on the evening of May 1 after police clocked his white Nissan Suburban at 52 miles per hour in a 30 m.p.h. zone. Mr. Sovtan, who allegedly failed a field sobriety test, was found to have no fewer than three prior convictions for drunken driving, according to the report.
Town Justice David Filer, who arraigned him the following morning, remanded him to the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office. He is due back in Justice Court on June 25.
Jennifer McDowell of East Hampton, 38, told town police she’d been checking her phone on the evening of April 24 when her 2016 Jeep went off Swamp Road and into a tree. Officers reported a “strong odor” of alcohol on her breath and other signs of intoxication, and said she performed poorly on the roadside sobriety test.
Charged with felony drunken driving, she was arraigned by Justice Filer on April 25, and was released on her own recognizance. She is due back in court on May 28. Her car sustained substantial damage to both the driver’s and passenger’s sides, and was towed by Joe’s Towing and Recovery to its garage in East Hampton.