A town judge settled evidence issues Thursday and set a trial date in the case of a maternity ward scuffle involving a son of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy.

Douglas Kennedy, who has pleaded not guilty to charges of physical harassment and child endangerment, will go on trial Oct. 22, said Mount Kisco Town Judge John Donohue.

The charges stem from Kennedy's Jan. 7 attempt to take his 2-day-old son from the maternity ward at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mount Kisco. Nurses tried to stop him, citing hospital policy, and two claim he injured them.

Kennedy says he wanted the baby to get some fresh air.

"Nobody should ever try to grab a baby from any parent's arms," Kennedy said as he left the courthouse Thursday.

The judge denied most of Kennedy's requests for access to the nurses' personnel and medical records. But he ordered the hospital to turn over its written policies about when and how a baby can be taken from the hospital by a parent.