By ROBERT BRODSKY
A retired Nassau County police officer was
sentenced Thursday to 30 days time served and a $1,425 fine for attempted
sexual conduct with a child under the age of 11 last year.
Dion Irizarry, 70, of
Farmingdale, also was sentenced by County Court Judge Teresa Corrigan to 10
years probation, and he must register as a Level 2 sex offender and stay away
from the victims.
Irizarry, who retired from the
police department in 1989 after 21 years on the force, is the father of Brandon
Irizarry, who played a role in a political scandal last year that led to the
ouster of Nassau Police Commissioner Thomas Dale.
Dion Irizarry was arrested Jan.
8 on two felony counts of second-degree sexual conduct against a child. Court
records state that the abuse of the first victim began Oct. 1, 2013, and ended
Dec. 31, 2013. The second victim was abused between Nov. 1, 2013, and Dec. 31,
2013, court records state.
Irizarry pleaded guilty in
February to one count of attempted sexual conduct with a child.
Anthony Capetola, Irizarry's
attorney, declined to comment.
The victims' mother said in
court that Irizarry should have been sentenced to at least five years in prison
for crimes that "were beyond comprehension." She said her daughters
suffered physical and psychological trauma from the abuse.
Corrigan said the terms of the
sentencing were agreed upon previously, but said, "I can only imagine that
there is no sentence that will ever satisfy you in this matter."
Shams Tarek, spokesman for
District Attorney Kathleen Rice, said the sentence protected the victims from a
"potentially traumatic" cross-examination in open court and
"ensures that the defendant will have a felony criminal record and
significant restrictions placed on him."
Brandon Irizarry who worked
last year on the unsuccessful third-party Nassau County executive bid of former
Freeport Mayor Andrew Hardwick, gave Nassau Police Sgt. Salvatore Mistretta a
civil subpoena drafted by the campaign, Mistretta has said. Mistretta served
the subpoena on Randy White, a witness in a case Democrats had brought against
Hardwick over the validity of nominating petition signatures.
An investigation by Rice found
that Dale and Chief of Detectives John Capece improperly intervened in the
dispute at the request of Gary Melius, owner of Oheka Castle in Huntington