Nearly 300 snow-removal summonses issued after this winter’s historic blizzards have sparked an escalating dispute in the Village of Great Neck, where residents say aggressive court tactics pressured them into guilty pleas while village officials insist the enforcement campaign was about public safety, not revenue.

The controversy centers not only on the tickets themselves, but on what happened after residents arrived in Village Justice Court to contest them.

The Great Neck Record News spoke with roughly two dozen residents who received summonses, and many described similar experiences during court proceedings. Several residents said they felt intimidated during plea discussions with prosecutors, who they said warned they could face penalties as high as $5,000 if they chose to appear before a judge instead of accepting reduced settlements.

Behrouz Zabih, who said he paid a $250 fine, described feeling pressured into accepting a plea deal rather than risking a harsher penalty.

“They told me to pay $250, or face the judge and maybe get a $650 [penalty] if the judge feels like it,” Zabih said. “I believe they had their foot on our throat.”

Zabih said his family had already cleared the property before village plows pushed snow back onto the sidewalk.

Resident Daryoosh Rahmanan said many homeowners who appeared in court felt intimidated after hearing repeated warnings about possible fines or property liens reaching $5,000.

Another resident, who asked not to be identified, said he hired workers to clear snow at a second home under construction but still received a summons after village plows pushed snow back onto the sidewalk. “They discounted it to $100, so we just paid,” he said. “They were scaring people to just pay and not come back.”

In total, 298 summonses were issued between Jan. 25 and Feb. 27 under the village’s snow-removal code following the Jan. 25-26 blizzard. Village officials acknowledged roughly 400 tickets had initially been prepared, but about 100 were later voided because they did not comply with village code requirements.

The enforcement effort affected a substantial portion of the community. Census data shows the village contains roughly 2,500 single-family homes, meaning nearly one in 10 households received a summons.

Source: LI Press