Aw, we love this: A blind poodle was saved from a storm drain in Mastic Beach yesterday. According to Newsday, Maggie, a 13-year-old poodle who used to be a therapy dog for retired nuns, fell 12-18 feet into a storm drain. "A police officer and several civilians used a crowbar to pry open a 150-pound lid to the storm drain. Then emergency services officers used a large, expandable pole with a large net to scoop up the dog, carefully raising her to the surface." Maggie's owner Patricia Fogarty said she was at her sister's house for a BBQ during the time of the incident and was grateful to her neighbors for realizing that Maggie was trapped, "They showed good American spirit." And Maggie seems to be doing fine—it didn't seem like she was injured. more ›

Cops who arrested three people—two women and one man—for assaulting a woman in Mastic Beach say that the trio "made numerous anti-gay remarks about the victim's sexual orientation." According to Newsday, Nora Mitzner (pictured), Lindsay McBeth, and Selwyn Icangelo repeatedly kicked, hit and pushed the female victim last night; the victim's injuries did not require hospitalization. The three were charged with aggravated harassment and the incident was reported to the U.S. Department of Criminal Justice. Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy said, "In Suffolk County, we stand united in denouncing violent and abusive acts against a person because of their race, creed, ethnicity or sexual orientation." Last year, a Ecuadorian immigrant was killed in Suffolk County during an apparent hate crime spree by teens. more ›

A complaint to child services led police to a home in Mastic Beach where seven children were being raised in conditions of utter squalor and prompted the arrests five adults who lived there. Newsday reports that the house had no heat along with "no running water, feces on the floor and bottles of urine around the house, with rotted food in the refrigerator." On top of that, "appliances and lights that were being run off a generator, a television was being charged with a car battery and cooking was being done indoors with propane." The seven children ranged from ages two to thirteen and are now in foster care with an order of protection from their former caretakers. One of the five adults was also charged with animal cruelty after the SPCA discovered two dogs and 14 cats. One neighbor told the paper that she refused to open windows in the side of her house that faced their home. A Suffolk County official said redundantly, "It was obviously a health hazard." more ›

A 14-year-old boy was shot last night outside a basketball game in Mastic Beach. As awards were being given out after a tournament at William Floyd High School in Suffolk County, shots were heard between the gym and the parking lot. A freshman was then rushed inside to be treated for a gunshot wound to his calf. The boy was a student, but not one of the players and there has been no word yet on the identity of the shooter or if it was another student as well. The athletic director described the chaotic scene saying, "We went into immediate lockdown mode...The cheerleaders were moved into a visiting locker room area, and the spectators from (visiting high school) Mercy were put in a hallway away from the crime scene. No one was allowed to leave for 20 minutes while we waited for emergency personnel and the police." more ›