Police: Long Island Nurse Took Inappropriate Photos Of Unconscious Teen Patient

WEST ISLIP, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A nurse has been arrested after authorities said he took intimate photographs of an unconscious teenage girl being treated in a Long Island emergency room.

Nicholas Petrella, 35, pleaded not guilty Friday to one count of unlawful surveillance, prosecutors said. A judge set bond at $15,000.

A criminal complaint alleges Petrella took cellphone pictures of the 17-year-old girl, who was being treated for alcohol intoxication in the emergency room of Good Samaritan Hospital on May 20.

"She was not conscious," Suffolk County Police Sgt. John Diffley told WCBS 880's Sophia Hall. "She was not aware of him or that the photo was being taken at all."

A nursing assistant saw Petrella lift the patient's hospital gown and take the photos, police said. The assistant then reported the incident to his supervisor.

Petrella has worked at the hospital since 2008. He has been suspended.

Diffley said there are no indications that Petrella committed this type of crime in the past.

Petrella's attorney did immediately return a telephone message seeking comment.

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