New York police are reportedly unhappy that their union is cutting back on the number of so-called Get Out of Jail Free cards they get to distribute to friends and family. So what are these cards?
The Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association (PBA) is reducing the number of such cards issued to members, according to the New York Post.
The plastic cards can be presented to officers who may use their discretion to spare people tickets for minor infractions such as speeding.
A source told the Post the cutback was ordered to prevent the cards’ sale online.
What are ‘Get Out of Jail Free’ cards?
For most, such cards exist only in Monopoly games.
But the ones issued to friends and family of police can help them escape punishment for minor crimes.
Other police unions, such as the Detectives’ Endowment Association and the Fraternal Order of Police, also issue the cards, which typically expire at the end of every year.
The plastic laminated cards identify to police that the bearer is a friend of law enforcement.
Officers say they are often kept next to the driver’s licence, so they can be casually shown to investigating officers along with a mention of which police force issued it to them.
Police unions, who are very tight-lipped about them, have said they serve as “a public relations tool” and are in no way an actual immunity.
Asked if these were Get Out of Jail Free cards, PBA spokesman Al O’Leary told BBC News: “No, they are not.”
What do they get you?
The cards do not entitle its owner to any special rights, but those who use them say they can help avoid traffic and parking tickets, such as red light and speeding violations.
Police officers will sometimes give warnings in lieu, but will still arrest the card holders for more serious violations, such as drink driving and aggressive speeding.
The decision is purely up to the officer’s discretion.
Professor Todd Clear, from the Rutgers School of Criminal Justice, told BBC News that the cards were more widely recognised by police years ago, but lost credibility as more and more got into the public’s hands.
He was personally offered a PBA card from a student over 20 years ago, but chose not to accept it.
“I think it’s a bad idea to have some people be able to show a card and be excused,” said Dr Clear.
“It’s not wise to rely on that card to get you out of trouble,” he said, adding that they are no longer “universally respected” by police.
Despite not being a blank cheque to commit crimes, the cards are still coveted on the black market.
They are sold on websites such as eBay for as much as $200 (£145). Expired ones go for as little as $3.
New York City Councilman Donovan Richards, who chairs the city’s Public Safety Committee, told BBC News that there should “protocols in place for PBA cards that ensures that there is no abuse in the system”.
Who uses them?
The cards are given to officers to distribute, as well as community leaders such as politicians and religious leaders.
The passes indicate the rank of the officer with a silver or gold badge or medallion, and which union has issued them.
They are also sometimes given to journalists, but some media organisations view them as a conflict of interest, and advise their employees to forgo them.
A spokeswoman for the New York Times tells BBC News that the newspaper’s journalists “are not permitted to seek or accept favours or special treatment from people or institutions they cover, including the police”.
This story is from The BBC News. To read the full story, please go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-42780382.
