Matthew McCue, of Mastic Beach, charged in shooting of 2 after his wife, kids and dog were menaced, lawyer says

A Mastic Beach man has been arrested for allegedly shooting two people during an argument earlier this week, according to the Suffolk County Police Department. The accused man's lawyer says the gunfire was precipitated by a pit bull menacing a Yorkie. 

The man, 37-year-old Matthew McCue, was charged with assault, reckless endangerment and other crimes, according to a department news release issued Wednesday. At an arraignment, he pleaded not guilty, and bail was set at $100,000 cash, according to the state online court database, which doesn't list whether bail was posted.

According to charging documents, McCue fired “numerous rounds” from a 9 mm handgun, which is illegal for him to have as someone convicted of a felony.

The shooting occurred Monday in Mastic Beach in front of a house on Woodside Road, between Forest Road West and Gooseberry Road. A group of people were arguing around 10 p.m. when McCue allegedly drew a handgun and fired, striking a 25-year-old man and a 34-year-old woman, according to the police account. Neither person was seriously hurt, the release said, and their names weren't disclosed.

One of the victims, Leona Symonds, told Newsday on Wednesday she's in the hospital and was with a doctor, so she couldn't immediately speak. She asked a reporter to call back in a few hours but did not answer the subsequent call.

The department's press office did not respond to a list of questions asking how McCue was caught, his relationship to the injured people or why he's suspected of being the shooter.

Joseph Hanshe, a lawyer assigned to represent McCue, told Newsday late Wednesday afternoon that McCue, a married mechanic who has five children, didn't do the shooting. 

Hanshe said the fight started because earlier in the day, McCue's wife was walking on the block with the couple's five children and Yorkshire terrier when a pit bull got loose from a neighboring house and began attacking the Yorkie. Someone in the house then menaced the wife by displaying pistols, and she called her husband, who came to her aid, the attorney said.

By Matthew Chayes

matthew.chayes@newsday.comchayesmatthew

Matthew Chayes, a Newsday reporter since 2007, covers New York City.