Sheriff issues himself a ticket

:clap: There are some honest people in this world..

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Brown County Sheriff Dennis Kocken didn't have to write himself a ticket. But he says it was the right thing to do.
"As sheriff, I'm held to the highest standard in law enforcement. How can I hold officers accountable if I don't hold myself accountable?" he said. "I'm satisfied I'm doing the right thing."
Kocken issued himself a ticket March 27 for an unsafe lane change, three weeks after he had rear-ended a suspected speeder after that driver slowed to turn. Neither the deputy who completed the accident report nor the Brown County district attorney's office felt that Kocken deserved a citation.
"But it kept bothering me," said Kocken. "Finally I decided to write myself a ticket. I felt it was the right thing to do."
The ticket carries a $160.80 fine that Kocken said he fully intends to pay.

http://www.courttv.com/people/2007/0411/sheriff_ap.html

So, what will this do? It will insure that the County pays for damage to the culprit's vehicle, which will probably cost more than the ticket he issued to himself. If the guy was injured, it could cost the county even more money.

While this seems noble, maybe it isn't.

Actually, from a legal perspective, by issuing himself a ticket, he's admitting to breaking the law, which absolves the town from liability...

If WI laws are like GA's, then he can't be held liable while driving a gov't vehicle. There have been several reports over the years about how this poorly written legislation has left accident victims paying their own medical bills after being injured by an at-fault gov't employee in GA.

If nothing else, it will be in writing that the other driver was not at fault for the accident, which may save him some insurance money.

bykerladi said:

Actually, from a legal perspective, by issuing himself a ticket, he's admitting to breaking the law, which absolves the town from liability...

Click to expand...

Does this vary by state? It seems to me that if he's in a uniform and in the employment of a county, that he will be held accountable.

Ok, I want to know what else he did that he is trying to draw attention away from? Did that make sense? I'm tired, I'll try to rephrase that tomorrow.




I swiped that cow from Sable. cute huh?

Awe, I think (and hope) he was just trying to do the moral thing. It's sad that every situation has to be questioned as though everyone has an ulterior motive. There are still some decent people in this world who just want to do what's right.

I'm not sure how this accident happened- the other driver was speeding, how did he rear end him?
In Ohio if you rear end another driver, you are held responsible no matter what the other driver is doing. It has to do with a failure to keep an assured clear distance.