Nypd brass is cracking down on cops who go through red lights while on patrol by forcing officers to fork over $50 fines if they get caught on camera and can’t prove they were on legitimate police business.
A Manhattan cop said he was hit with a summons three months ago after he ran a red light to stop a vehicle with a potential drunken driver.
The motorist was sober but tired, so no ticket was issued, and the cop didn’t make a note of the stop in his memo book, he said.
When the precinct received the red-light summons, his supervisor grilled him — then ordered him to pay the fine.
“They didn’t believe me,” the cop said. “Where was the proof? I had to pay it out of my own pocket.”
His union blasted the policy.
“We were trained in the Police Academy that the greatest single deterrent to crime is police omnipresence, which translates into catching the bad guys by surprise,” said Pat Lynch, head of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association.
“If that means circling a block with suspicious activity or passing a light for the sake of catching a perp off guard, then so be it.”
(Source: NY Post)
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5 Responses
It’s definitely time to crack down on this. Obviously, the detalis have to be worked out, but you barely see a patrol car waiting by the light. They have complete disregard for the flow of traffic.
I’m so sick of cops taking advantage of their power and speeding, runnin red lights, not using turning signals, and overall not obeying common road rules. I applaude the NYPD for taking this step to avoid injustice within the authorities.
I agree with #1! Just because they police are who they are, they feel they can do whatever they want on the road nowadays!
So when do the brass crack down on the cops double parking on Coney Island Ave (infront of certain take out stores) or parked in bus stops (of course to issue a ticket). What about the cops still on their cellphones while they are driving? I have respect for real cops, not these traffic cops that make believe they’re anything other then revenue makers for the city.
Based on the comments, I don’t think I will be able to change opinion no matter what I say, but police officers often need to loop around the block quickly to get a second look at a person or event. Also, getting to a crime in progress without lights and sirens may be necessary so they don’t alert the criminal that they are on their way.
As for double parking in front of food places, the police are people and do need food and water. However, if they are on line getting an apple or a sandwich and a call comes over for a robbery or assault in progress, they should not have to run 5 minutes to their car. It adds significantly to the response time and may mean the difference between catching the criminal or just taking a report. That being said, there are times.when the police should not run a red light and should pay the fine such as on non-enforcement duty or transporting prisoners. It is almost impossible and even counterproductive to write down every fleeting thought on their log.