Brent St. Denis: State Patrol wrong
Saturday, June 11, 2005
No ticket likely for Trooper Marty Smith. With all due respect, this officer should receive "the ticket" for "improper mountain driving." Upon receiving said ticket several years ago, I considered contesting it. Upon researching the law, I realized the wording makes it impossible to contest. If your car ends up off the road, you are guilty.
In the June 9 Steamboat Today article regarding Smith's accident, Sgt. Gary Meirose suggested a chargeable accident and any internal action by the State Patrol should be, and are, related. This is false. A violation of the law is handled by the courts, whereas any internal action is governed by the department's rules and regulations manual. If I drove for trucking company "A" and had a rollover, I doubt Meirose or Smith would fail to issue the ticket because I might face company discipline.
In the article's last paragraph, Meirose is quoted in reference to Trooper Smith's discipline, "It's none of your business, we'll tell you when it's taken care of."
Nice attitude.
Let's refresh Meirose: Smith "totaled" a state vehicle purchased with tax dollars. Both officers work for the state. The state government was formed by the people to serve and protect the people.
So exactly whose business is this really?
Brent St. Denis
Steamboat Springs
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Requires free registration
Posting comments requires a free account and verification.
Or login with:
OpenID