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Kabot trial underway at Riverhead Town Justice Court

By Vera Chinese

VERA CHINESE PHOTO | A television news van parked outside Riverhead Justice Court Monday morning.

The DWI trial involving former Southampton Town Supervisor Linda Kabot is underway at Riverhead Town Justice Court today. Six jurors and two alternate jurors were selected last week and opening statements were expected to be heard at 2 p.m.

Riverhead Town Justice Allen Smith is presiding over the trial, which is expected to last at least until tomorrow afternoon, though it could be postponed due to Tuesday’s predicted storm.

Ms. Kabot, 43, of Quogue was arrested on Sep. 7 2009 by Westhampton Beach Village Police. She was pulled over on Main Street in Westhampton Beach just before midnight on Sep. 6. Police said her eyes were glassy and her breath smelled of alcohol at the time of her arrest.

Ms. Kabot was charged with DWI, failure to submit to a pre-screen sobriety test,failure to maintain her lane and failure to stop at a stop sign. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The trial was originally scheduled to be held in Westhampton Beach Village Justice Court, but was moved due to a conflict of interest as Ms. Kabot knows both village judges personally.

Ms. Kabot lost her bid for re-election to current supervisor Anna Throne-Holst two months after her arrest.

Vera Chinese has been the editor of northforker.com and northforker magazines since May 2014. Prior to that she spent two and a half years as a staff reporter for the New York Daily News. She joined the Riverhead News-Review as a staff writer in January 2010 and was named Associate Web Editor nine months later. She previously worked for the Southampton Press Western Edition and was named the third place 2008 Rookie Reporter of the Year by the New York Press Association. She graduated from Wagner College in 2006 where she received a bachelor's degree in English. She earned a master's degree in English education from New York University in 2007. She is a 2002 graduate of Eastport High School and has lived on the East End for more than 20 years.

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