Wyandanch driver charged after crashes, Taser and police chase

Christopher Dockery pleaded not guilty Sunday morning after Suffolk County police said a crash at Little East Neck Road and Vermont Avenue in Wyandanch turned into a dangerous chain of collisions, a Taser deployment and a brief police chase. The 60-year-old was driving a 2018 Hyundai just after 8 p.m. Saturday when the car hit a utility pole, setting off a sequence that police say endangered anyone nearby.

Police said Dockery repeatedly tried to restart the damaged Hyundai instead of getting out. When an officer moved in to shut the vehicle off, Dockery allegedly pushed the officer, prompting the use of a Taser. Even after being shocked, police said, Dockery drove away north on Little East Neck Road.

The car’s path then widened the risk for the neighborhood. Police said Dockery nearly collided with a police vehicle near Straight Path and Edison Avenue, then struck another vehicle and a sign near Little East Neck Road and Straight Path before officers arrested him minutes later near Straight Path and Essex Street. The crashes unfolded in a part of Wyandanch where homes, storefronts and through traffic sit close together, leaving little margin for a driver to keep moving once a collision has already happened.

Neighbors said the scene drew people outside and quickly became alarming. Dylan Rivera said he heard a loud bang and saw the damaged car being restarted again and again. Erika Linzer said she feared the driver could do damage or kill someone.

Dockery was charged with driving while intoxicated, reckless endangerment, leaving the scene of a crash involving property damage and obstructing governmental administration. He was released with GPS monitoring and is scheduled to return to court on Aug. 3. The sequence added another summer enforcement case to Suffolk County police’s workload and showed how fast one impaired-driving stop can become a broader public-safety threat on a busy Suffolk road.