Two unmarked NYPD SUVs — one often used to drive around Police Commissioner Edward Caban, the other linked to a hands-on deputy commissioner — have racked up more than $3,500 in unpaid tickets, including for speeding in school zones, running red lights and driving in bus lanes, the Daily News has learned.
But what isn’t clear is if those violations were justified.
Under city policy, when unmarked cars are issued tickets, the NYPD can get them dismissed by explaining the circumstances, noting — for example — the commissioner was racing to the hospital to visit an officer who had been shot. In the case of a Chevy Suburban often used by Caban’s security detail to drive him around and a Ford Expedition often used by Deputy Commissioner of Operations Kaz Daughtry, those answers weren’t clear.
The NYPD declined to answer any questions about the issue, including which of the initial 58 tickets were issued when Caban and Daughtry were actually in the respective vehicles. NYPD executives have access to a fleet of SUVs and other unmarked vehicles equipped with red-light packages and other accoutrements.
Several days after the Daily News first asked for an explanation, the unpaid tickets were resolved, according to howsmydrivingny.nyc, which tracks by license plate all parking tickets and those issued when violators are caught on city surveillance cameras. The adjudication helped avoid what could have been an embarrassment — one or both vehicles towed or booted because some of the tickets were in judgment, meaning the department hadn’t moved to resolve them.
A police spokesman directed The News to the NYPD Patrol Guide, which requires the driver of any police vehicle that gets ticketed to provide within 30 days an explanation to the chief of department’s office. The Suburban’s tickets, 20 of them totaling $1,232.74, date to last December, and the Expedition’s tickers, 38 of them totaling $2,271.31, date to March of this year. Police sources identified the vehicles by their license plates.
A watchdog group and a transit advocacy group said police, especially the higherups, who set the tone for the entire department, need to follow the rules — just like average New Yorkers must.
John Kaehny, executive director of Reinvent Albany, said it’s important that city agency heads send the right message by how they do business.
“With great power comes great responsibility, including doing the paperwork that shows you follow the same rules as everyone else,” Kaehny said.
An NYPD source said that while department officials can often articulate a defense for the violation that results in a ticket being dismissed, when they can’t the officer driving the vehicle or the NYPD can be forced to foot the bill.
The tickets for the Suburban date to Dec. 5, when the driver was caught on video speeding in a school zone near Cross Bay Blvd. and 159th Ave. in Howard Beach, Queens. That was one of seven school zone speeding violations. School zone cameras are in operation round the clock, but the ticket data do not indicate what time each infraction occurred. The same SUV was flagged twice for running a red light and 11 times for bus lane violations,
Of the Expedition’s 38 tickets, 32 were for speeding in a school zone — most recently on July 9 in Manhattan — three were for running a red light and three were issued for a bus lane violation. On several days, the driver was caught on camera committing multiple infractions, according to the howsmydrivingny.nyc, including on May 13 when it was flagged four times in less than 4 miles for speeding in school zones in the Rockaways in Queens.
Daughtry, who is one of the people who use that vehicle, is a hands-on commander known to take part in late-night operations — sometimes with him at the wheel — and pursuits aimed at cracking down on “ghost cars” with fake or stolen plates.
According to the NYPD Patrol Guide, ticketed officers can argue they were involved in an “urgent police action” or a “necessary police action.” Urgent action typically involves an emergency call for service or “an active pursuit or an ongoing surveillance of a moving subject,” according to the guide. “Necessary police action” is defined as a “less than urgent” police response but one that is still necessary to fight crime.
According to the city, any ticket not paid or disputed within about 100 days goes into judgment, meaning the vehicle in question could be booted or towed.
When The News first contacted the NYPD, the Suburban had eight tickets in judgment, with $684.42 owed.
The Expedition had six tickets in judgment, with $450.73 owed.
Prior to all 58 tickets being adjudicated, the following message was posted on the website page for the Expedition: “Under the Dangerous Vehicle Abatement Act this vehicle could be booted or impounded due to its 32 school zone speed camera violations (>= 15/year) from 03/09/2024 to 07/09/2024.”
