i was allways told that it is not true. They don't have to give out a certain number of tickets but most people seem to think they do
2006-10-29 02:02:06 · 25 answers · asked by Big Daddy R 7 in Politics & Government ➔ Law Enforcement & Police
Most departments do not have a "quota" on tickets, but individual officers who do not show an expected level of activity are "encouraged" by their superiors to step up the number of tickets they write. On our department, they measured number of "contacts" with the public, so tickets, written warnings, and verbal warnings were all counted, so it was left to the officer's discretion if a ticket was written or not.
2006-10-29 06:24:02 · answer #1 · answered by stephen p 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
No, no, no! I am a certified District Court Clerk and have done so for 9 years. There is no quota! The Police have so many different responsibilities that there is no way they can stop all the people that speed and break the law. They have wrecks, domestics, robberies etc. The State Police write more speeding tickets because they are usually on the interstate. They have to make 5 contacts a shift, meaning they can help someone with a flat tire, or with their car breaking down. The only reason they have them make 5 contacts is to make sure the officers aren't just sitting in their cars all day.
2006-10-29 12:39:35 · answer #2 · answered by Jan G 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Yes and no. Yes because you are expected to write a certain amount of tickets a month. No because there is no set number. What we did was took the total number of citations issued on a shift and divided by the number of officers that worked. It simply showed who was above and below the median number.
Ticket production is only a part of an officers duties and it along with several other areas are used to judge an officers performance.
I will have to say that an officer who fell below then average didn't have a chance to go to the Traffic Detail.
2006-10-29 04:50:58 · answer #3 · answered by JOHN 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No, this isn't true. In the nineteenth century ticket quotas were quite common. Police in some towns were often paid based on how many perps they rounded up and how many citations they wrote. This led - as you might imagine - to widespread corruption. Francois Vidocq, the fellow who established the police in Paris, would actually commit crimes so that he and his men could solve them.
By the mid twentieth century, however, pork barrel police departments had pretty well disappeared. However, it's still a statement of derision to complain about a cop's quota when one has been picked up on a minor infraction.
2006-10-29 02:08:06 · answer #4 · answered by texascrazyhorse 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I am sure that some agencies may have "quotas" But in Oklahoma quota are illegal and not tolerated. You usually only see them in small towns where the city council members tell the officers what to do don't know any better. It is also illegal in Oklahoma to use the fines and cost of traffic tickets to "fund" the department.
2006-10-29 03:55:04 · answer #5 · answered by Lori H 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No. Quotas are illegal but a department can set an amount of tickets an officer should write for a good evaluation.
2006-10-29 08:30:53 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
We have a Good number of friends that are police officers. There is no quota! People have always thought this to be true. I think that this myth started as a way to justify a speeding ticket. It's simply a way to not take responsibility for ones own actions!
2006-10-29 02:11:58 · answer #7 · answered by jodi g 3 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Some agencies do. Others measure the officers performance on the number of contacts they have on a monthly basis. Most agencies shy away from the word quota but in essence they do.
However, It is no different than what your employer imposes on you as far as job performance.
2006-10-29 03:08:18 · answer #8 · answered by Ranger473 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It's generally referred to as a "productivity level". Meaning...as a police officer you should be productive, not just driving around in a car checking out women and co-eds. If you turn in your "stats" for the month with a bunch of zeros on it, you'll be hearing about it! To be fair, they also measure how many arrests, reports taken, warrants served, calls you went on, parking tickets given, etc...This helps weed out the slugs (although I'm assuming that some departments don't use this method judging by the quality of police officer they are hiring.
2006-10-29 03:22:54 · answer #9 · answered by Lesleann 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
They might not have one by department but the government determines grant money by the need for it. So when its time for grant money the police have a quota. A set amount for each kinda ticket. ( speeding, seat belts,etc...)
2006-10-29 06:54:19 · answer #10 · answered by dustin g 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋