By now almost every reader knows someone who has received a Blue Line speed zone warning or ticket. And most citizens are aware of the controversy that engulfed the Perkins administration and the council after the cameras were first installed.
There has been very few complaints lodged at the Shreveport City Council meetings this year after Mayor Arceneaux intervened to reset the school zone enforcement times and Blue Line fulfilled the contractual requirements of sign postings and flashing lights at the school zones.
But now there is a new controversy on the Blue Line tickets that only involves the Shreveport Police Department. In recent weeks, many SPD officers have been ticketed--reportedly four from the narcotics unit and five patrol officers.
Sources say that the tickets for the narcotics officers were voided. But not so for the patrol officers who are ticketed. These units were in service by SPD officers who were on duty, although none were traveling with sirens and emergency lights flashing.
Attorney Pam Breedlove is representing one patrol officer that was ticketed. Ms. Breedlove reports that her client was driving at a speed in excess of the school zone speed limit while on an exigent police task.
Breedlove states that many of the ticketed patrol officers were justified in their speed through the zones because of the shortage of SPD officers who can respond quickly to active calls for service.
How this ball of yarn unravels is a story yet to be told. However, Breedlove is no slouch when it comes to aggressively and effectively representing SPD officers. Her client may have to pay for the ticket out of personal funds – even though the “ticket” was issued to the City of Shreveport. Breedlove cites this as a demoralizing tragedy for not only her client but also the other cited patrol officers as well as the department as a whole because they are so overpaid and understaffed. Breedlove stated she does not understand how a City can continue to mistreat its officers who are trying their hardest with the little resources they have. Breedlove predicts that issuing tickets to police officers driving SPD vehicles in the course of their job will cause more officers to quit and SPD to go from 142 officers short to 200 officers short in record time.
No doubt there will be more to this controversy.