Nicole Ribeiro De Souza, the 23-year-old accused of driving her Nissan Rogue onto the Montauk Green in the early hours of June 29 and knocking down the tents of the Montauk Artists Association Art Show, was back in East Hampton Town Justice Court on July 30, briefly, for the first time since her arraignment on charges of first-offense D.W.I. and six counts of criminal mischief. The incident resulted in the total destruction of the works of many of the artists.
During a recess in the proceedings, Ms. De Souza was approached by a member of the court staff, who informed her that she had been determined not eligible for the services of Legal Aid, which provides free legal representation to low-income defendants. Therefore, she was told, she is responsible for hiring her own attorney.
She had not been aware of that, she told Justice Steven Tekulsky. “I couldn’t afford an attorney,” she told him, after he asked her why she was appearing in court without representation.
Reviewing the case file, Justice Tekulsky noted that Ms. De Souza had owned her own business and was reportedly working as a nanny for two families at the time of her arraignment. She answered that she had since lost both nanny jobs, because she was no longer able to make the hour-long drive to each family’s house, and that she’d had to turn the unspecified business over to a partner.
Justice Tekulsky set her next appearance for Aug. 20 at 11 a.m., telling her she must return to court on that date with counsel. If Legal Aid again determines her to be ineligible, he said, she will have to hire her own attorney — “simple as that,” he said. He added that she might have to call Legal Aid “multiple times” to have a “meaningful discussion” about her change in circumstances.
