New Haven Forgives Invalid Parking Tickets With Offensive Joke

More than a hundred people in New Haven will not have to pay for parking violations after finding a crude joke written on their tickets.

“Unfortunately, an employee of the Department of Transportation, Traffic and Parking took it upon themselves to write inexcusable, inappropriate language on parking tickets in the City of New Haven,” Department of Transportation, Traffic and Parking Director Doug Hausladen said.

After the July 4th holiday, Hausladen said his office became aware of tickets where a parking enforcer did more than incorrectly fill them out. He used the word “beat” on the form to make a crude sexual phrase.

“That’s not a joking matter, so definitely, they should let it go,” said Peggy Rowley, who works in New Haven.

The city traffic enforcement officer who wrote the 110 tickets is now serving a five day unpaid suspension after being on administrative leave, Hausladen said.

“The public trust is something that we value more than the three thousand dollars because these were not valid tickets,” Hausladen said.

Investments in technology enabled Hausladen staff to quickly address the appeals of people who received these invalid tickets, he added.

Anyone with a ticket with the offensive line should contact Hausladen at (203) 946-8075 or visit the city’s transportation department in the basement of 200 Orange St. in New Haven.

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