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Former Southampton Town Supervisor Linda Kabot has filed a notice of claim against Westhampton Beach, Village Police Chief Ray Dean and five officers with the village’s police department in connection with her 2009 arrest on a charge of driving while intoxicated. Ms. Kabot was acquitted of that charge following a jury trial in February.
In an interview on Wednesday, Ms. Kabot confirmed that, through her attorneys at the Miller Place law firm John Ray and Associates, she had filed a notice of claim Tuesday against the village and several officers in the Westhampton Beach Police Department. Village Clerk Rebecca Molinaro confirmed on Wednesday that the municipality had been served the day before.
The notice states that the individuals “engaged in malicious prosecution and infringement upon my rights,” Ms. Kabot said.
Though she did not name the officers or say if she would be seeking monetary damages, a copy of the notice lists Chief Dean, Lieutenant Trevor Gonce and Police Officers Steven McManus, Ryan Lucas, Mark Yakobowski and Jeffrey Platt as defendants. It also states that Ms. Kabot will seek “a sum of money to be determined” based on damages to her career and reputation, as well as emotional and physical damages. A notice of claim is a precursor to a lawsuit and sent to a municipality or a public authority when a person claims an agency, official, or employee caused the person damage.
Ms. Kabot said in a statement she released to The Press on Wednesday that it was the intent of the arresting officers—McManus and Lucas—to “injure her in her reputation and cause harm to her mind and body, her career as a public official and her career potential.” The statement added that she had “suffered economic losses from the incident, including legal costs for attorneys.”
Ms. Kabot, 43, of Quogue, lost her reelection bid in 2009 after she was arrested shortly after midnight on Labor Day that year in Westhampton Beach and charged with DWI and three other charges—driving while impaired, failure to maintain her lane of travel and failure to stop at a stop sign—after police said she refused to take a Breathalyzer test.
In an interview Wednesday, Westhampton Police Chief Raymond Dean said that he was aware of the notice of claim, and reiterated previous statements defending the officers involved in Ms. Kabot’s 2009 arrest.
“I can’t speak to what she is doing, but I stand by what I have told the press in the past,” he said. “My officers made a lawful arrest [in the case]. They did what they are supposed to do under that situation, and a jury did find a guilty verdict for the stop sign violation.”
Ms. Kabot was acquitted by a jury in Riverhead Town Justice Court on February 4 of the DWI, impaired driving and traffic lane charges; the jury found her guilty of only the stop sign violation.
A message for attorney William Keahon, who represented Ms. Kabot in the case, was left at his Hauppauge office on Wednesday. Mr. Ray, who runs the Miller Place law firm that is now representing Ms. Kabot, also could not be immediately reached for comment.
Village Board member Hank Tucker said he had received a copy of the notice but declined to discuss it, explaining he has not yet spoken with other village officials. He said board members will most likely discuss the litigation during their monthly meeting scheduled for Thursday, May 5, at 7 p.m.
“It’s too early to comment,” Mr. Tucker said. “I haven’t discussed it with any attorneys or the trustees yet, and I haven’t heard from anyone.”
Westhampton Beach Mayor Conrad Teller could not be immediately reached for comment.
