Post by KC on Oct 29, 2006 22:04:13 GMT -5
A man claiming to work for the New York City Police Department sent an angry letter to Reno County court officials last week complaining about a speeding ticket on his way to the Kansas State Fair.
His primary complaint?
That the Kansas Highway Patrol didn't follow "professional courtesy" and disregard a traffic infraction upon learning that the motorist was a fellow law enforcement officer.
Clerks at Reno County District Court received the letter Monday morning, along with a check for the $126 fine Officer John McNeeley received for traveling 85 mph in a 70 mph speed zone on K-96 near Hutchinson.
"I pulled over, gave the officer my driver's license and my NYPD identification card. I was polite and I did everything I was supposed to do," McNeeley wrote in the letter. "About five minutes later, he brought back a summons to me and thanked me for my cooperation. I was dumbfounded. I then tried to ask him why a cop would write another cop a ticket. He would not answer."
Local law enforcement officers say there isn't any standing rule of "professional courtesy" that prohibits, or even discourages, officers from writing traffic tickets to each other.
Furthermore, Capt. Joleen Smith with the Reno County Sheriff's Office said pulling out a law enforcement commission card during a traffic stop generally insults the on-duty officer - a presumptive move that amounts to a wink and a nod.
"If they're worried about professional courtesy, they wouldn't speed in our county and put our officers in that situation," Smith said. "I'm not saying I'm an angel, because I'm not. But when I'm in another county, I'm more cautious because I don't want to be put in that position."
McNeeley's letter presents a different point of view, where a career in law enforcement comes with a get-out-of-jail-free card.
"I have stopped many people and the minute they pull out the law enforcement ID card, I say 'Sir or Mam, (sic) have a nice day.' No questions asked, no matter where they are from or what they do," McNeeley wrote. "... I just hope that one day that I get the opportunity to pull over a Kansas Highway Patrolman who is visiting our city, and let him or her know what their fellow officer did to me."
Kansas Highway Patrol Technical Trooper Gary Warner said that troopers don't issue tickets to people who don't deserve them - speeding tickets are earned. Like Smith, Warner said it's a professional courtesy for other law enforcement officers to follow the rules laid out for everyone.
"Maybe they do things a little different back East than we do here," Warner said. "But if people got a ticket coming, they get it - and we don't let anything else factor into our equation."
Smith agreed, saying that several of her officers have received speeding tickets and that they got what they had coming.
"They have no one to blame but themselves," Smith said. "If they're speeding, they're fair game, just like everyone else. We're not above the law."
www.hutchnews.com/news/local/stories/ticket102406.shtml
His primary complaint?
That the Kansas Highway Patrol didn't follow "professional courtesy" and disregard a traffic infraction upon learning that the motorist was a fellow law enforcement officer.
Clerks at Reno County District Court received the letter Monday morning, along with a check for the $126 fine Officer John McNeeley received for traveling 85 mph in a 70 mph speed zone on K-96 near Hutchinson.
"I pulled over, gave the officer my driver's license and my NYPD identification card. I was polite and I did everything I was supposed to do," McNeeley wrote in the letter. "About five minutes later, he brought back a summons to me and thanked me for my cooperation. I was dumbfounded. I then tried to ask him why a cop would write another cop a ticket. He would not answer."
Local law enforcement officers say there isn't any standing rule of "professional courtesy" that prohibits, or even discourages, officers from writing traffic tickets to each other.
Furthermore, Capt. Joleen Smith with the Reno County Sheriff's Office said pulling out a law enforcement commission card during a traffic stop generally insults the on-duty officer - a presumptive move that amounts to a wink and a nod.
"If they're worried about professional courtesy, they wouldn't speed in our county and put our officers in that situation," Smith said. "I'm not saying I'm an angel, because I'm not. But when I'm in another county, I'm more cautious because I don't want to be put in that position."
McNeeley's letter presents a different point of view, where a career in law enforcement comes with a get-out-of-jail-free card.
"I have stopped many people and the minute they pull out the law enforcement ID card, I say 'Sir or Mam, (sic) have a nice day.' No questions asked, no matter where they are from or what they do," McNeeley wrote. "... I just hope that one day that I get the opportunity to pull over a Kansas Highway Patrolman who is visiting our city, and let him or her know what their fellow officer did to me."
Kansas Highway Patrol Technical Trooper Gary Warner said that troopers don't issue tickets to people who don't deserve them - speeding tickets are earned. Like Smith, Warner said it's a professional courtesy for other law enforcement officers to follow the rules laid out for everyone.
"Maybe they do things a little different back East than we do here," Warner said. "But if people got a ticket coming, they get it - and we don't let anything else factor into our equation."
Smith agreed, saying that several of her officers have received speeding tickets and that they got what they had coming.
"They have no one to blame but themselves," Smith said. "If they're speeding, they're fair game, just like everyone else. We're not above the law."
www.hutchnews.com/news/local/stories/ticket102406.shtml