Long Island's Premier Criminal & DWI Defense Law Firm
Arrested on Long Island: A Guide for Brooklyn Residents
Brooklyn sends more people to Long Island courtrooms than any other place this firm serves — it is the single largest client borough in our files. If you were arrested on Long Island and live in Brooklyn, the case stays in Nassau or Suffolk, and the practical problem becomes getting from Brooklyn to a 9:30 a.m. calendar call.
Everything below on getting to Long Island court from Brooklyn assumes a weekday morning calendar call, which is when most of these cases are heard. Times and fares are current as of September 2026 and should be checked before you travel.
Brooklyn to Nassau County District Court, Hempstead
| How | Route | Rough time | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| LIRR | Atlantic Terminal, Nostrand Avenue or East New York on the Hempstead Branch. Most trains require a change at Jamaica; a few peak trains run straight through | 50–70 min station to station | $13.50 peak / $10.00 off-peak |
| Car | Belt Parkway east to the Southern State Parkway, then Exit 17 (Hempstead Avenue), Exit 19 (Peninsula Boulevard) or Exit 21 (Nassau Road) | 40–50 min clear, 60–90+ in rush | Gas plus meters |
| Work van or truck | BQE (I-278) to the Long Island Expressway, then south — or Jamaica Avenue onto Route 24, Hempstead Turnpike, which becomes Fulton Avenue | Add 15–25 min | — |
The Hempstead station is the easy part of this trip. It sits at the Rosa Parks Hempstead Transit Center, and 99 Main Street is about two blocks away — a short walk, not a cab ride. Nineteen NICE bus routes also terminate there if your arrest was somewhere else in Nassau and you need a connection.
Brooklyn to Suffolk County District Court, Central Islip
| How | Route | Rough time | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| LIRR | Ronkonkoma Branch. You must change at Jamaica — Atlantic Terminal does not appear anywhere in the Ronkonkoma timetable | 1 hr 20 min – 1 hr 40 min, plus the last two and a half miles | $21.50 peak / $16.00 off-peak |
| Car | Belt Parkway to the Southern State Parkway east, Exit 43A (Carleton Avenue). The court’s own directions: eastbound, left onto Spur Drive North, first right into the complex | 55–70 min clear, 90–120+ in rush | Gas |
| Work van or truck | BQE to the Long Island Expressway east, Exit 56 (Route 111) south to Wheeler Road, then Carleton Avenue | Add 20–30 min | — |
The Central Islip station is not the courthouse. It is about two and a half miles away — verified by the federal bankruptcy court in the same complex and by Touro Law School, which is inside it. Suffolk County Transit Route 17 runs between the Central Islip LIRR station and the Cohalan Court Complex, roughly every 30 minutes on weekday mornings, for $2.25. Budget 20 to 40 minutes for that leg, or take a cab. This is the most common way a Brooklyn client misses a Suffolk calendar call.
Coming out from Brooklyn?
Call 516-939-1529 before your first date. Our office is two blocks from the Hempstead LIRR station, so we can meet you off the train.
Driving to Long Island court from Brooklyn for work
This affects a lot of Brooklyn clients. The Belt Parkway is closed to commercial traffic — including any vehicle with non-passenger registration — and so are the Southern State, Cross Island, Northern State and Meadowbrook. The Southern State’s overpasses were deliberately built low to keep commercial vehicles off it. Your phone will route you onto those roads anyway.
The legal route out of Brooklyn is the BQE to the Long Island Expressway. For Central Islip, stay on the LIE to Exit 56 and come south on Route 111 — that is the court’s own published route and it is truck-legal end to end. For Hempstead, come off the LIE onto Route 24, Hempstead Turnpike, which turns into Fulton Avenue; the courthouse is one block north of it.
What time to leave for Long Island court from Brooklyn
Criminal calendars in both courts are called at 9:30 a.m., and there is a magnetometer line before you get to the part. Be at the door by 8:45.
- Hempstead by train: leave Brooklyn around 7:15 a.m.
- Hempstead by car: leave around 7:15–7:30 a.m., earlier if the Belt is bad.
- Central Islip by train: leave around 6:15–6:45 a.m. The bus at the far end is what makes this early.
- Central Islip by car: leave by 7:00 a.m. The Southern State eastbound between the Belt and Exit 22 is the choke point.
Long Island court from Brooklyn: common questions
Can I get the case moved to Kings County?
No. The case belongs to the county where the arrest happened.
Is there parking at the Hempstead courthouse?
There are metered municipal parking fields beside the courthouse, on the blocks bounded by Main, Front, Fulton, Jackson and Columbia. They are paid meters, and the fare boxes take coins — bring some. Central Islip has a large on-site lot in the court complex, but it serves the state courts, the federal courthouse, Family Court and a law school, so it fills early.
My ticket says a village court, not Hempstead.
Then go to the village court. Nassau and Suffolk have dozens of town and village justice courts, many sitting in the evening, and the building named on your paperwork is the one that matters.
Do you have to make the trip to Long Island court from Brooklyn at all?
Sometimes not. Whether your lawyer can cover a date without you depends on the stage of the case and on how it started — a desk appearance ticket leaves more room than a custodial arrest, and the judge decides either way. The rules, stage by stage with the statute for each, are on the main page for New York City residents.
One provision is worth knowing before your first date: under CPL 182.20(1)(b)(iv), if you ask to be arraigned by video and the court grants it on that basis, the only securing order available is release on your own recognizance. Whether that is the right move in your case is a conversation to have with a lawyer first, not a decision to make from Brooklyn.
Tell us your court date before you plan the trip
Some of these appearances can be handled without you, and some cannot. Call 516-939-1529 and we will tell you which one yours is.
Long Island court from Brooklyn: the short version
If you take one thing from this page, take this. Travelling to Long Island court from Brooklyn is a two-part problem — the trip itself, and whether you need to make it at all.
- Check the courthouse on your ticket first. Nassau cases go to Hempstead. Suffolk cases from the five western towns go to Central Islip — but an arrest in the Hamptons, Riverhead or on the North Fork goes to that town’s own justice court.
- Hempstead is walkable from the train. Central Islip is not. The Central Islip station sits about two and a half miles from the courthouse; Suffolk County Transit Route 17 covers the gap for $2.25.
- Calendars are called at 9:30 a.m. in both courts, with a magnetometer line before that. Be at the door by 8:45.
- If you drive a work vehicle, do not follow your phone. The parkways are closed to commercial traffic. Use the Long Island Expressway.
- Ask before every date whether you need to be there. Some appearances can be covered by counsel or handled electronically, and a trip you do not have to make is the cheapest win in the case.
Hochhauser Criminal & DWI Defense
Richard Hochhauser
164 Jackson Street, Hempstead, NY 11550
Tel: 516-939-1529
RH@Hochhauserlaw.com
This page provides general information about New York criminal procedure and court logistics and is not legal advice. Court schedules, fares and transit routes change — confirm details with the court or carrier before you travel. Every case turns on its own facts.
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