The driver of an SUV that crashed head-on into a Riverhead Police vehicle on West Main Street yesterday has been charged with driving while ability impaired by drugs.
Police said Jeremy T. Rosendahl, 37, of East Quogue was semiconscious at the scene of the crash, where police found a used hypodermic needle and several heroin packets inside his vehicle.
Riverhead Volunteer Ambulance Corps personnel treated Rosendahl at the scene with Narcan, a heroin overdose reversal drug and then transported him to Peconic Bay Medical Center, where he was treated, arrested and released to police custody.
Rosendahl’s eastbound vehicle crossed a double yellow line on West Main Street east of Mill Road shortly before 4:30 p.m. and struck a westbound marked Riverhead Police vehicle, according to a police press release.
Riverhead Police Sgt. Stephen Palmer, the operator of the police vehicle, was also transported to PBMC, where he was treated and released.
Rosendahl was charged with driving while ability impaired by drugs, criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree, criminal possession of a hypodermic instrument and additional vehicle and traffic law violations.
He was held at Riverhead police headquarters for morning arraignment, police said.
Editor’s note: A criminal charge is an accusation. By law, a person charged with a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
The survival of local journalism depends on your support.
We are a small family-owned operation. You rely on us to stay informed, and we depend on you to make our work possible. Just a few dollars can help us continue to bring this important service to our community.
Support RiverheadLOCAL today.
