bonnie (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} faux_phoenix) wrote,@ 2008-11-20 02:34:00 |
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stand clear of the closing doors please: or how i learned to play lawyer and hate the MTA
tonight was swell. molly and i polished off a bottle of wine in brooklyn and just relaxed with the guys. i registered for all of my classes and am pretty content with my schedule.
i've got to go to court tomorrow morning! finally! i can't wait to just get this over with, and a little part of me is secretly excited to be playing lawyer. i looked up all of the legal codes and wrote down my testimony, which can be found behind this livejournal cut.
November 20, 2008.
Transit Adjudication Bureau
29 Gallatin Place, 3rd Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
To Whom it May Concern:
On November 2nd, 2008, I was issued a ticket for holding the train doors open on a subway car. On my ticket, Officer Fielding wrote that he “observed deft. interfere w/ T.A. operations by holding train doors open w/out permission.” In the MTA NYC Transit Rules of Conduct, there is no section prohibiting the holding of doors, however Section 1050.6(a) prohibits T.A. interference. It reads:
“No person may perform any act which interferes with or may tend to interfere with the provision of transit service, obstructs or may tend to obstruct the flow of traffic on facilities or conveyances, or interferes with or may tend to interfere with the safe and efficient operation of the facilities or conveyances of the Authority.”
Although I did hold the train doors open, my actions did not interfere with the operation of the train or obstruct the flow of traffic in any way. The conductor did not make an announcement or ask me to stop holding the doors. I held them for less than twenty seconds. Therefore, I am pleading Not Guilty to the alleged violation of Section 1050.6(a).
A brief description of events:
My boyfriend and I were traveling home from a close friend’s birthday party at approximately 3AM. At one stop, the doors opened and Officer Fielding shined a flashlight into the train car. He said, “tell your friend with the mop head to throw away his beer.” My boyfriend complied, and stepped off the train to put the can in a trash receptacle. As my boyfriend walked back towards the train, Officer Fielding stopped him and asked for some ID. The doors were about to close, and I didn’t want to be left on the train without my boyfriend.
I stopped the door from closing to ask the officer if my boyfriend could get back on the train. Officer Fielding did not answer me. I continued to stand there, and asked again whether or not he could get back in, when the officer told me that my boyfriend would be held there and that I would have to make a choice. “In or out”, that was all he said.
I do not feel comfortable traveling alone at that hour, so I exited the train car and joined Officer Fielding and my boyfriend on the platform. The officer asked for my ID, to which I readily complied. He made a phone call on the payphone and began to read my ID number.
I was shocked and confused when he handed me a ticket. As the next train pulled into the station, the officer finished writing my boyfriend’s ticket in the doorway of that train car. My boyfriend, Andrew Stiegler, has written an account of these events for your review, as well.
I would like to assert that, as a student, I am not financially capable of paying a $100 fine. If in fact I am found guilty of this violation, I respectfully request a reassessment of the penalty. I was unaware that my actions were in violation of MTA law, although I am prepared to accept responsibility. I thank you for your time and consideration in this matter.
Sincerely,
Bonnie M. McLoughlin
tonight was swell. molly and i polished off a bottle of wine in brooklyn and just relaxed with the guys. i registered for all of my classes and am pretty content with my schedule.
i've got to go to court tomorrow morning! finally! i can't wait to just get this over with, and a little part of me is secretly excited to be playing lawyer. i looked up all of the legal codes and wrote down my testimony, which can be found behind this livejournal cut.
November 20, 2008.
Transit Adjudication Bureau
29 Gallatin Place, 3rd Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
To Whom it May Concern:
On November 2nd, 2008, I was issued a ticket for holding the train doors open on a subway car. On my ticket, Officer Fielding wrote that he “observed deft. interfere w/ T.A. operations by holding train doors open w/out permission.” In the MTA NYC Transit Rules of Conduct, there is no section prohibiting the holding of doors, however Section 1050.6(a) prohibits T.A. interference. It reads:
“No person may perform any act which interferes with or may tend to interfere with the provision of transit service, obstructs or may tend to obstruct the flow of traffic on facilities or conveyances, or interferes with or may tend to interfere with the safe and efficient operation of the facilities or conveyances of the Authority.”
Although I did hold the train doors open, my actions did not interfere with the operation of the train or obstruct the flow of traffic in any way. The conductor did not make an announcement or ask me to stop holding the doors. I held them for less than twenty seconds. Therefore, I am pleading Not Guilty to the alleged violation of Section 1050.6(a).
A brief description of events:
My boyfriend and I were traveling home from a close friend’s birthday party at approximately 3AM. At one stop, the doors opened and Officer Fielding shined a flashlight into the train car. He said, “tell your friend with the mop head to throw away his beer.” My boyfriend complied, and stepped off the train to put the can in a trash receptacle. As my boyfriend walked back towards the train, Officer Fielding stopped him and asked for some ID. The doors were about to close, and I didn’t want to be left on the train without my boyfriend.
I stopped the door from closing to ask the officer if my boyfriend could get back on the train. Officer Fielding did not answer me. I continued to stand there, and asked again whether or not he could get back in, when the officer told me that my boyfriend would be held there and that I would have to make a choice. “In or out”, that was all he said.
I do not feel comfortable traveling alone at that hour, so I exited the train car and joined Officer Fielding and my boyfriend on the platform. The officer asked for my ID, to which I readily complied. He made a phone call on the payphone and began to read my ID number.
I was shocked and confused when he handed me a ticket. As the next train pulled into the station, the officer finished writing my boyfriend’s ticket in the doorway of that train car. My boyfriend, Andrew Stiegler, has written an account of these events for your review, as well.
I would like to assert that, as a student, I am not financially capable of paying a $100 fine. If in fact I am found guilty of this violation, I respectfully request a reassessment of the penalty. I was unaware that my actions were in violation of MTA law, although I am prepared to accept responsibility. I thank you for your time and consideration in this matter.
Sincerely,
Bonnie M. McLoughlin
