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2012 Park Smoking Tickets Already Well Ahead Of 2011
By
Garth Johnston
Published Apr 19, 2012
Modified Apr 19, 2012
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By
Garth Johnston
Published Apr 19, 2012
Modified Apr 19, 2012
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Yesterday, while everyone was focusing on Mayor Bloomberg's desire to kinda ban smoking in people's homes, an interesting bit of news about another of The People's Nanny's anti-smoking initiatives was revealed. The number of tickets written to people smoking in parks—tickets which many didn't think would ever really be written—have taken off like wildfire.
Last year, after the smoking ban kicked off in May, just 84 tickets—which can cost up to $300, a higher figure than the public was initially told—were written total. But so far in 2012 at least 108 summonses have been issued for smoking in the parks. That's pretty impressive considering that in the first month of the ban last year just one ticket was written—to a reporter goading cops.
Still, as Geoffrey Croft of NYC Park Advocates notes, if the Parks Department really wanted to, "They could write 108 summonses every two hours if they wanted to. Park Enforcement educate the public first and show a lot of discretion in avoiding ticketing but there are some people who still refuse to comply." For example? Last year "a Park Enforcement Patrol officer was assaulted on the main lawn in Union Square Park by a 6'4''- 260 pound park patron after the man was repeatedly asked to put out a cigarette. The man refused to produce ID and became belligerent and began cursing."
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parks department
smoking
smoking ban
smoking tickets
Garth Johnston
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