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Cops Figured Out Ways To Beat Electronic Scanners To Fix Tickets
By
Ben Yakas
Published Apr 24, 2011
Modified Apr 24, 2011
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Apr 24, 2011
Modified Apr 24, 2011
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After it was revealed that more than 400 cops could be facing disciplinary charges in a massive ticket-fixing scheme, Mayor Bloomberg discussed the seriousness and implications of the probe, which has been going on for nearly three year, on Friday. However, he noted that since July, the NYPD has adopted a new computer system to track tickets; as a result, he said "it would be very hard to manipulate the system." It seems that some cops didn't think it was that difficult.
Even after the system changed over, cops overheard on wiretap didn't sound too put out by the new technology: "Like anything else, people adapt. They were heard saying how it was harder for them now but not impossible," a police source told the Post. The new system forces cops to scan their ticket books at their precinct station house before going on patrol, with bar codes providing an electronic history of each summons. their tickets get scanned again at the end of a shift, then deposited into a summons box for up to 24 hours before being sent out. So while it is harder to just "lose" a ticket now, the new system doesn't account for cops going back to the box to alter information on the handwritten tickets.
One police supervisor gave some insights into how to invalidate a ticket: "The plate is the key. The plate and the registration have to match. If they don't, that's a technical dismissal." The easiest way to do so is to change a "1" to a "4" on the paper work. Cops can also kill moving violations by missing court dates or "forgetting" summons details. "There's no foolproof system. The fixing was still going on until the point when cops started saying, 'Oh, my God! They are coming after us,' " said the source familiar with the probe.
Previously, the president of the Sergeants Benevolent Association, the union for the NYPD's front-line supervisors, vigorously defended the conduct of police officers caught in the probe, said that ticket-fixing had been around as long as summons had been given out, and called the practice a mere "courtesy."
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cops
mayor bloomberg
nypd
police
Probe
ticket-fixing
ticket-fixing scheme
tickets
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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