Traffic tickets up in downtown Smithtown

Little more than a year after park rangers began enforcing traffic laws in downtown Smithtown, the rangers have ticketed more than 100 drivers for speeding and other violations, town officials said.

Two town park rangers were enlisted to double as traffic cops when Smithtown officials became frustrated by what they viewed as insufficient patrols by Suffolk police. Three pedestrians have been killed by vehicles in one short downtown stretch in less than 16 months.

Rangers were instructed to ticket speeders and other violators while patrolling East Main Street, also known as State Route 25 and Jericho Turnpike.

Councilman Robert Creighton said Suffolk police staff reductions have left the Fourth Precinct, which covers Smithtown, with fewer officers for highway patrol. He said tickets issued by rangers might deter speeding.

Rangers normally patrol East Main Street because it is dotted with several tiny parks, including memorials for veterans and Sept. 11 victims.

"We have to do whatever we can do to make a police presence there," said Creighton, a former Suffolk police commissioner. "If there was enough of a police presence, then we would not have to do this . . . I think it's an urgent matter because it's a matter of public safety."

But the policy has drawn the ire of police union leaders, who complain that traffic enforcement by the rangers takes jobs away from police.

Steve Bienemann, a Fourth Precinct police officer and trustee with the Suffolk Police Benevolent Association, questioned whether the rangers, who typically monitor town parks, are working within their job descriptions.

"I don't think they belong there," Bienemann said. "I think they were hired to do something other than that."

Creighton said the rangers, who carry weapons, were trained at the Suffolk police academy and are qualified for traffic enforcement.

Fourth Precinct commanding officer Insp. James Rhoads said he did not object to the rangers patrolling East Main. "It needs enforcement," he said. "As far as I know, it hasn't caused any problems."

Rangers began handing out traffic tickets about three months after a November 2009 crash killed Courtney Sipes, 11, of Smithtown. A Stony Brook woman later admitted she had been high on heroin and was sentenced to 4 to 12 years in prison for causing Courtney's death.

On Jan. 2, 2010, Charles Doonan, 65, of Flushing, and his fiancee, Mirtha Rotkowitz, 61, of Sunnyside, were struck by a car as they crossed the road. Doonan, a retired New York Police Department deputy inspector, died in August from his injuries.

Army National Guardsman Seamus Byrne, 33, of Smithtown, was struck and killed last month.

Park rangers handed out 75 tickets last year for speeding, red light violations, driving while talking on cell phones and other offenses, Creighton said. So far this year, 41 tickets have been issued. The town does not receive any portion of fines for traffic violations, Creighton said.