The Associated Press
CRESTVIEW, Fla. (AP) -- A grand jury says Crestview police supervisors had a “good-ol'-boy intent” when they voided traffic violations but that was not enough to charge them with ticket fixing.
The panel Thursday said it found no evidence police were paid to destroy citations as required for a criminal charge after reviewing a 10-month investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Grand jurors concluded supervisors would routinely “take care of” tickets for violators who either knew someone in the department or were considered influential in the community.
“As one officer put it: ‘There was no corrupt intent, it was good-ol'-boy intent,’ ” the panel stated in a written report.
Former Police Chief Maxie Barrow, who retired for health reasons after the investigation began, defended his decisions to void tickets for violations he felt deserved only a warning.
“My intent was to make sure citizens were treated fairly,” Barrow said. “When they were not treated fairly, I tried to intervene on their behalf.”
The grand jury, however, noted state law gives only judges the power to dispose of a ticket. An issuing officer also can void a citation if it contains false information.
The report praised Barrow’s successor, Travis Gillihan, for overhauling ticket policies during his first week as chief.
“I don’t get involved with traffic citations,” Gillihan said.