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To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

nyc.streetsblog.org

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Re: To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

#81

Post by tantalor »

tverbeure wrote: post #70
tantalor wrote: post #25

What is the point of this article? > Like all drivers in New York State, Giovansanti is immune to consequences as long as he pays the $50 tickets So he's allowed to do this. Why are we talking about it?

We are talking about this because part of the job of a journalist is to expose broken policies.

It's already a well known problem. That's what the Stop Super Speeders Act is meant to solve. So pass the bill and move on. No need for investigative journalism to expose a problem we already know about.

Re: To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

#82

Post by dpkirchner »

toraway wrote: post #60
OutOfHere wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am of two minds about it. On one hand, speeding alone when done by a mature highly-attentive driver isn't really dangerous no matter the limit, because the driver has enough expertise to know what his personal limit ought to be. The residual risk is more from immature drivers, the mistakes of other cars, cyclists, and pedestrians. I have been on both sides of it. I have been the speeder who can drive very safely, a…

I live near a middle school in the suburbs and it may come as a surprise but kids are frequently crossing a busy street using a regular, unprotected crosswalk.

No amount of child deaths and dismemberments are enough to deny me the right to get to where I'm going 30 seconds faster. Don't you know how important I am?

Re: To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

#83

Post by ToValueFunfetti »

nkrisc wrote: post #76

> The expert, former cop turned criminal justice professor Michael Alcazar, said Giovansanti should face “serious discipline.” But that’s not happening — an NYPD spokesperson shrugged off the suggestion of punishment because Giovansanti’s tickets are “not related to his job or his duties in the department.” This angers me. Police officers are granted special privileges that ordinary citizens are not, and should be he…

The same way we can trust an overweight doctor, a depressed therapist, a housecleaner who doesn't make their bed, or me to verify code I push to corporate repos even while I vibecode apps at home for fun without paying attention. I don't understand the basis for applying this standard to cops.

Re: To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

#84

Post by nslsm »

tverbeure wrote: post #71
nslsm wrote: post #4

Has he ever hit something or someone? If the answer is no, then speeding laws are too strict and must change.

Would you apply the same reason to drunk driving? If not, why?

…yes? My point is if someone can break the law 547 times and no one is affected then the law is stupid.

Re: To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

#85

Post by OutOfHere »

iso1631 wrote: post #18
OutOfHere wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am of two minds about it. On one hand, speeding alone when done by a mature highly-attentive driver isn't really dangerous no matter the limit, because the driver has enough expertise to know what his personal limit ought to be. The residual risk is more from immature drivers, the mistakes of other cars, cyclists, and pedestrians. I have been on both sides of it. I have been the speeder who can drive very safely, a…

> Bicyclists must be mandated to wear light-colored high-visibility clothing, reflective gear, and a helmet, otherwise their bicycle should be confiscated. The leading cause of death for car occupants is head injuries, I assume you believe that all car occupants must wear a helmet. All cars needless to say need to be bright orange Any infringement should have the car crushed.

I actually absolutely believe that all cars should be brightly colored. It doesn't have to be orange. It is an easy win.

As for helmets in cars, yes, it's a particularly good idea for small cars that have a lower collision safety score. An appropriate helmet should be used that does not obstruct viewing mirrors or the blind spot. Pedestrians too can benefit from a helmet.

Re: To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

#86

Post by tencentshill »

lasky wrote: post #10

No doubt police should not be above the law and we should call that out. However this article reads more like hyperbolic slander.

They're leveling some hefty accusations and signing their name on it. It would be monumentally stupid for J.K. Trotter, the author, to say these things without having any proof that holds up in court. If it's false, they would be sued and lose quickly. The data is pretty much all public record combined with standard journalism work.

Re: To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

#87

Post by napoleond »

ToValueFunfetti wrote: post #83
nkrisc wrote: post #76

> The expert, former cop turned criminal justice professor Michael Alcazar, said Giovansanti should face “serious discipline.” But that’s not happening — an NYPD spokesperson shrugged off the suggestion of punishment because Giovansanti’s tickets are “not related to his job or his duties in the department.” This angers me. Police officers are granted special privileges that ordinary citizens are not, and should be he…

The same way we can trust an overweight doctor, a depressed therapist, a housecleaner who doesn't make their bed, or me to verify code I push to corporate repos even while I vibecode apps at home for fun without paying attention. I don't understand the basis for applying this standard to cops.

Each of those examples varies widely, and I don't think most people would treat each of them the same way.

In general when the stakes are higher and the ambiguity of outcome is less clear, secondary signals become more important.

Concretely: I don't give a shit if my housecleaner doesn't make their own bed as long as they make mine; the outcome I need is easy to verify and the stakes are fairly low so the secondary signal doesn't matter very much. Conversely, I care a lot if the therapist I'm relying on to help me manage my depression is visibly unable to manage their own; the outcome I need has a slow feedback loop and the stakes are high so I'm much more likely to rely on secondary signals like "is this person able to manage their own mood successfully?"

Re: To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

#88

Post by alwa »

haritha-j wrote: post #19

I don't understand, doesn't NY have a points system for driving licenses? In most places you could speed at most half a dozen times before you lose your license.

They do! But their speed cameras can’t establish the identity of the human who was driving, at least to a legally sufficient standard.

While I imagine it’s reasonable to assume “one vehicle per licensed driver” across much of America, that assumption seems much less reliable in NYC, where space is at an extreme premium and large families often share space. Can’t punish Mom for Dad’s speeding habit just because the car’s in her name. Plus, that doesn’t get Dad off the road!

And it doesn’t really seem cost-effective (or politically viable) to build out an elaborate appeal system to litigate which human was driving every single time. (Or to layer some kind of AI facial recognition onto the cameras. No. Bad hackers. :) )

Re: To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

#89

Post by [deleted] »

ToValueFunfetti wrote: post #83
nkrisc wrote: post #76

> The expert, former cop turned criminal justice professor Michael Alcazar, said Giovansanti should face “serious discipline.” But that’s not happening — an NYPD spokesperson shrugged off the suggestion of punishment because Giovansanti’s tickets are “not related to his job or his duties in the department.” This angers me. Police officers are granted special privileges that ordinary citizens are not, and should be he…

The same way we can trust an overweight doctor, a depressed therapist, a housecleaner who doesn't make their bed, or me to verify code I push to corporate repos even while I vibecode apps at home for fun without paying attention. I don't understand the basis for applying this standard to cops.

[deleted]

Re: To Protect and Swerve: NYPD Cop Has 547 Speeding Tickets

#90

Post by keddad »

kennywinker wrote: post #77
Tade0 wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> escalating multiplier for reoffense within the same category of offense with a cool down period of a few years if they don't break the law. My country - Poland - implemented this part a couple of years ago. Specifically a reoffense in the same category within two years results in a higher tier fine - about twice the usual amount. Fines were also adjusted for inflation after over 20 years of being nominally the same…

Jesus christ, 140kph?!? That’s fast. Max speed limit where i live is 120kph and that feels too fast for most roads.

It's really not, especially on a highway. Makes me sad to read about more and more speed restrictions - there is nothing wrong with those in areas there cars and pedestrians cross, but seeing a highway with a 110 (or sometimes even 80) speed limit just feels stupid. Sometimes I'm happy to live in a place with relatively modest speeding fines (also, you have to speed A LOT to loose your license over it, it's a very rare occasion).
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