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by John_Deutzman from New York City

Last Post 1 day, 3 hours Ago


27 Points in 1 Traffic Stop
Jun 25, 2008 | 8:34 PM
Category: Traffic
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This STORY ABOUT A TEENAGER who got 27 points on his license in one traffic stop is bound to strike a nerve. You either think the kid was on a dangerous rampage on residential streets or the cop went overboard writing tickets. For those of you writing your opinion, I will play Devil's advocate and respond with the other side.

Here are some things I learned doing this story:

It's totally the cop's call as far as how many tickets are written. A cop could give anything from a warning to writing everything the officer observed.

In New York City and certain other cities and counties, you cannot "plea bargain" or make a deal on a traffic ticket. In most other places you can cut a deal.

The way most deals work is that the judge will look at your driving record. If you have a clean record the judge may cut you a lot of slack. You come in with a speeding ticket, you plead "no contest," the judge sees you are a good driver and chooses not to put any points on your license. You may have to pay court costs, but that's it.

Since you can't plea bargain, you are left with two choices:

1. Plead "guilty" and hope that the minimum number of points and penalties are given out.

OR

2. Plead "not guilty" and hope you win the case. If you lose, however, the judge can use discretion when handing out penalties and the length of your suspension.

In traffic court the standard of proof is "clear and convincing evidence." It's not "beyond a reasonable doubt" like in a criminal case or the "preponderance of the evidence" like in a civil case.

Cops come into court swear under penalty of perjury that what they observed is on the ticket. They are trained in observing traffic violations and their testimony carries a great deal of weight.

The average motorist comes into traffic court with zero proof, no video witnesses, etc. to prove their side. That's why the cops with their "clear and convincing evidence" win in Staten Island 96 percent of the time.

I'd love to hear your opinion.

>>WATCH MY FOX 5 REPORT

>>SPEEDING-TICKET CONVICTIONS: BOROUGH BREAKDOWN

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Member Comments Total Comments: 329
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jmax123 read my blog view my photos
Jun 25, 2008 | 9:33 PM

At age 17, the day I got my license, I did not really know how to drive, (at the driving test the tester said I failed, but he would pass me if I took him out to lunch---he was either joking, or a pedophile, I never stuck around to find out.)
Same day I get my license, I go buy a classic Mustang convertible, drove it to Allstate to sign up for insurance; the ink didn't dry yet, and I drove away, went through a stop sign and knocked another car into a house! Whoa! The car was actually inside the house. No one hurt badly though; thank God.
The tester did not do me a favor, by passing me, but when the cops came to the scene of the accident. I was just an innocent-looking kid, and told the cop that it was my fault, because I drove through the stop sign thinking "what are the odds of a car coming now". The cop must have felt sorry for me, so he said "Please don't say that, then I have to give you a ticket-----just say you didn't see the car coming." So I said okay, "I didn't see the car coming". He then asked me for my license, I gave it to him and he said "Please sign your license now, so I don't have to give you a ticket." He gave me a pen and I signed it. After they towed my stang away, the cop was kind enough to give me a ride home. I think he feared for leaving me in a bad neighborhood after destroying a house in it.
I deserved more than a ticket, the homeowners were not happy either, but the cop probably saw me and thought of his daughter. That was many years ago, but a real lesson learned!

I'm guessing there had to be a reason they t
jmax123 read my blog view my photos
Jun 25, 2008 | 9:34 PM

I'm guessing there had to be a reason they threw the book at him. Maybe he mouthed off at the cop? Did anyone ever ask the kid why he thinks he got so many points, or if he may have offended anyone? 27 points from one incident seems like an attack or retaliation.

Jane
TomRetiredPD read my blog view my photos
Jun 25, 2008 | 9:46 PM

27 Points is totally absurd I don’t care what the kid did. You can give a few tickets in one stop but come on 27 points! I will for sure be watching tonight to get the rest of this story but to me so far it sounds like an over zealous officer. Afer the show I will have a little more to say.

Tom
DailleS
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:22 PM

i dont think that this kid should have gotten so many...if he was really speeding the police officer would have stopped him because of danger instead of sitting back writing tickets
picklez458
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:23 PM

27 pts is a lot. the statenm island attitude that we're all guilty of having must have came out. p.s. ryan is hot.
John_Deutzman read my blog
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:25 PM

Jane,

According to the kids mom, she had the cops do an inestigation and was eventually told that her son did not curse at the cop or do anything out of the ordinary
tomfromSI
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:26 PM

After seeing the story i must honestly say that the motorist looked like a wise guy and his father throwing the fire dept thing in surely didnt help.I have personally read and seen on the news numerous young people killed in traffic accidents on staten island and many FDNY memebers arrested for DWI on this island.I say bravo to the highway patrol officer and thanks officer Marino for keeping our roads safe.Obey the rules and signs or pay the fines.I hope this young driver and his parents learned there are laws that must be obeyed.
jiants86
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:26 PM

I'd like to know what the cop would think if his son or daughter was given that many tickets. You don't have to give that many tickets to get your point across. The cop was 1,000 percent wrong. If he was a little more diplomatic with the kid, I'm sure he would still get the point.
jrzymuscle25
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:26 PM

There is no reason for a cop to abuse his 'right to write as many tickets' like that. If anything, a police officer can write one big ticket and speak to the person and warn them they'll be watched.. And yea- if they peel away and drive like that down the street- then hand them another ticket. But What kind of image do you make for yourself and the department when you abuse the power.. no wonder people think twice of asking officers for help or trust them.. and are even scared of them to the point of where you wonder if they protect you when you think there out to get you?!!!
ANGELRUBY read my blog view my photos
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:27 PM

John,
If drivers are slowing down to save on gas, that would mean less speeding tickets are issued which leads to towns/cities losing fine money. To meet their quota, when you find a driver doing something wrong, you don't stop him/her immediately. More tickets, more money for the city. Why else would that cop let the boy keep speeding????

Or, did that cop who stopped this boy get grief at roll call that day from his Sgt. for not writing enough tickets to meet his ticket quota?
John_Deutzman read my blog
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:27 PM

DailleS,

That's one of the unanswered questions. Why not pull him over right away. Then again if your job is to go after dangerous drivers, maybe this cop has enough experience to trail a driver and call it when it is getting out of hand
tomfromSI
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:29 PM

PS Mr Deutzman........It looked
like your fox5 vehicle went thru that stop sign also or atleast you stopped way beyond the stop line.Are you guilty of a traffic violation also?
Carmine
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:30 PM

He doubled the speed limit twice... he should have his license revoked!! What happened if killed a little kid? We would all be singing a different tune!!
sanchezles
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:31 PM

Cops are supposed to enforce the law. They are not above the law. So, why is it that if I drive and talk on a cell phone without a hands free device I would end up receiving a ticket by the boys in blue. However, if a cop is doing the same he won't suffer the consequences.

Next time I see an officer driving and talking on the cell phone without a hands free device I will ask him, "Excuse me officer, If I was driving and talking on a phone without a hands free device, would you give me a ticket?"
JimS
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:31 PM

Highway patrol has better things to do than write frivolous tickets. If he wrote them, there was a reason. Quit your whining and learn how to drive. Just because your dad has been a NYC fire fighter shouldn't mean you don't get tickets if you're going to kill someone. Lay 'em on...
was_a_sopranos_fan
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:31 PM

I dont care what this kid did but 27 points is insane... that cop was only out to write tickets and be one of those nasty cops you run into. They feel they have power so they can do what they want I mean come on 27 points with in a few blocks. So the city is showing and telling us that they can write what ever tickets they want while we are diving them especially speeding tickets and we can do a thing to beat them or get them taking off if we know for a fact that we were not speeding.

The city sees that this sorry cop wrote 27 tickets and wont do anything for him. That just sucks...
JoshuaBanks
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:32 PM

I think its very sad and absurd that this police officer can put other people at risk and just follow and watch while this kid racked up 27 points! The officer should have stoped him at his first offense. Protect and serve? Not at all, its risk and observe!
picklez458
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:32 PM

haha tomfromSI it did look like it did
JimS
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:33 PM

Actually, law enforcement personnel are exempt from most of the traffic code.
JimS
Jun 25, 2008 | 10:34 PM

Joshua, You definitely have a point.
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John_Deutzman

John Deutzman, a New York native, has been working as a reporter at Fox 5 News since September of 2001. John has won 12 career Emmys and has received 28 Emmy nominations. He's known for his aggressive and at times humorous style when catching bad guys and exposing scams for the Fox 5 Investigative Unit. John's stories have resulted in arrests, businesses being shut down and dozens victims getting their money back from scam artists. Before moving back to New York, John spent 11 years in Miami, first as a sports reporter but when hurricane Andrew struck, John was thrown into news reporting and evenutally made the full time switch to news. John also had stints in Binghamton,New York and Springfield,Massachusetts
. A native of Smithtown,Long Island, John is an 11th-generation Long Islander. He describes himself as a 50/50 mix of his two grandfathers. One grandfather was a journalist who owned the town paper, the "Smithtown Messenger" and the other was one of the first cops in town who had a reputation for being tough and crazy but fair.

Member Since: 6/1/2006