This NYPD officer just got a six figure settlement over his rejection of “courtesy cards” during traffic stops
As everyone knows, police officers conduct millions of traffic stops each year. This is when drivers are pulled over for traffic infractions or other reasons. However, one New York police officer recently sued over using so-called courtesy cards. Specifically, the department eventually demoted him for not honoring this “get out of jail free” card from the associates of his fellow law enforcement officers. He now has a massive settlement, but his career as a police officer has suffered.
The department punished this police officer for holding drivers accountable during traffic stops
Millions of people get pulled over each year for traffic stops. Naturally, many of these drivers wish they had a “get out of jail free” card. According to the Associated Press, this is the case in New York regarding people who have an in with police officers on the force. The way it allegedly works is that New York police officers get these laminated cards to give to their friends, family, or anyone else. People with the cards show them to the officer on the scene. The officer then lets them off the hook for minor infractions.
The courtesy cards people show during traffic stops include the name of a police union. They also have an image of an NYPD badge. Notably, the department does not officially recognize them.
Last year, Officer Mathew Bianchi sued the New York Police Department. The lawsuit wasn’t over the department’s courtesy cards but rather the punishment he faced for not honoring them. However, the department took a harsher stance after Bianchi issued a ticket to a friend of the department’s highest-ranking uniformed officer. He says the department moved him from the traffic unit and placed him on night patrol.
He has since moved to the day shift. However, he also says, “I’ve literally applied for just about everything since I’ve been put back, and they’ve denied me for everything. They’re not very secretive as to why, and I’ve had supervisors tell me why I can’t go anywhere.”
Now, a year later, Officer Mathew Bianchi, who has been with the department for nine years, is getting a $175,000 settlement over the traffic stop issue.
