DWI charge for man stopped for broken light

A Hampton Bays man stopped Thursday morning for a defective brake light faces a drunken driving charge after his blood-alcohol level was found to be more than three times the legal limit, State Police said.

Andre Purdie, 31, was driving on Montauk Highway in Hampton Bays at about 1:40 a.m. when a trooper pulled him over for the infraction, a news release said.

The trooper "detected a strong odor of alcoholic beverage," the release said, and Purdie failed sobriety tests.

Purdie was arrested and provided a breath-analyzer reading of .26 percent, police said. The state limit is .08 percent.

He is charged with DWI, unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and other traffic violations and is scheduled to appear in the Town of Southampton Court on Aug. 30.