We all knew speeding and traffic tickets were a shake-down scam, but now it has been proven. Detailed records of traffic tickets in SE Michigan from 1982-2016 show that tickets being issued have fallen by 40% while the number of motorists has increased. If tickets are for our own safety, then accidents ending in fireballs must happen 1,000 times a day! Wrong, traffic-related deaths and accidents are down over the same period. The reduction in tickets is from the reduction in traffic patrols and the increasing reluctance of cops to pull people over for minor infractions. Cellphone recordings and confrontational drivers make it not worth the effort to pull someone over for going a few MPH over the speed limit. Tickets dropping across SE Michigan vary by municipality and Michigan was the #1 speed-trap state 10 years ago. High speed-trap areas to avoid: Ecorse, Hamtramck, Lincoln Park, and River Rouge.

In order to keep municipal court money flowing in, traffic cops and prosecutors often “cut deals” for speeders, allowing them to plead to “Impeding Traffic” instead. The fines are higher but the driver gets no points on their license. Thankfully, Detroit Police Chief James Craig says, “Our officers are given a lot of discretion to warn drivers, there is no mandate to write tickets like many police departments have. If you’re too aggressive on ticketing motorists, is strains community-police relations.”

And finally, in “It is a Darwin move to be anywhere near Detroit” news,

• A man selected 5 gift cards at a Dollar General on Gratiot and said to the cashier, “Activate these cards or I’ll shoot you.” Crime Stoppers is offering a $1,000 reward.
• A Detroit couple arriving home and getting out of their car were approached by two men on foot. When the couple ran, one of the muggers started firing shots, hitting the man in the leg. The thieves then stole what they could from the victims’ Jeep Wrangler and fled.
• A woman was mugged in the Somerset Mall parking lot. Two armed 17-year-olds approached her and said, “Give me everything or I’ll blow you away!” The teens were later caught in Southfield on other unrelated felony charges, and police found the woman’s items. What were you doing for fun at age 17? Thankfully, these two blights-on-society are temporarily getting a time-out.

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