North Merrick woman charged with daughter in Freeport heroin bust faced 2013 drug charge with her son, records show
Denise Burke, 51, and her daughter, Danielle Burke, 18, both of 1378 Whittier Ave., were arrested and charged with selling heroin Monday night in Freeport, police said. Credit: NCPD
A North Merrick woman arrested and charged along with her daughter Monday night with selling heroin in Freeport was also charged in 2013 alongside her son with heroin possession, incidents that a top Nassau police official called "pretty sad."
Denise Burke, 51, and her daughter, Danielle Burke, 18, both of 1378 Whittier Ave., were arrested after the 9 p.m. sale on Merrick Road, police said.
Nassau police Chief of Detectives Kevin Smith said police have been called to the Burke home more than 20 times since 2008 for domestic complaints and other issues, but no arrests were made.
Freeport residents tipped off cops to the mother-daughter duo's alleged heroin-selling in April, Smith said, and Nassau narcotics/vice bureau detectives and Freeport police made the arrests as part of the Long Island Heroin Initiative -- a crackdown on the drug.
Smith said it's "pretty sad" that drug-dealing and possession appear to be a family affair for the Burkes.
Danielle Burke was charged with four counts of third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance, four counts of fourth-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, petty larceny and third-degree unauthorized use of a vehicle -- the latter two charges as a result of open warrants in an unrelated incident in New York City, police said.
She pleaded not guilty at her arraignment in First District Court in Hempstead and was given a $23,000 bond or $11,500 cash bail, officials said.
Denise Burke was charged with third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance and third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, police said. She also was charged with petty larceny stemming from an open warrant in a New York City case. She also pleaded not guilty and was given a $20,000 bond or $10,000 cash bail, officials said.
Both women were represented by court-appointed attorneys and as of late Tuesday had not posted bail, officials said.
No one answered the door at the Burke home Tuesday afternoon.
In April 2013, Denise Burke and her son, Jamie Burke, 17, also of 1378 Whittier Ave., were each charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance after, Nassau County police said, officers found the pair had eight envelopes of heroin after a traffic stop on Bellmore Avenue.
In February 2014, she pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in exchange for prosecutors dropping the heroin possession charge, according to court records. As part of the plea deal, she paid a $250 fine and was given a 1-year conditional discharge.
Jamie Burke, who was driving the 1999 Toyota Camry when it was stopped in North Merrick at 9:06 p.m., also was charged with operating a motor vehicle as an unlicensed driver and was issued a summons for tailgating. His court file in the 2013 heroin possession case is sealed, a court official said.
John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”
Updated now Newsday travel writer Scott Vogel took the ferry over to Block Island for a weekend of fun.
Updated now Newsday travel writer Scott Vogel took the ferry over to Block Island for a weekend of fun.
