CPC Series
There's a time and place for lenience

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Travelling home by minibus the other night I heard a passenger describing to the driver an incident he witnessed in which a Police officer had issued a statutory fine to the driver of an illegally parked delivery truck.

It was said that the truck driver was delivering goods to a shopping arcade. Within a minute, an officer appeared and began issuing a ticket just as the driver returned. The driver asked the officer to give him a break. He claimed he had been parked there for less than a minute. The officer went ahead and issued the ticket.

The storyteller said that, under the circumstances, he thought the officer was unreasonable. The minibus driver agreed, saying that usually Police officers would wait a minute or two and, if the driver turned up in time, give him a warning rather than a ticket. He described the Police officer's action as improper and said that a complaint ought to be filed. Other passengers wholeheartedly agreed with him.

I realised that this little impromptu chat between passenger and driver had created an unfavourable image of the Force among all those who overheard it. I thought about it and eventually came to what I think is a reasonable conclusion.

Although the officer who issued the ticket for an illegal parking offence was apparently following the book, he was considered by ordinary members of the public to have acted unfairly. Why? Because he failed to strike a balance between his duty to enforce the law and a minor offender's expectation of sympathetic treatment - even lenience.

I have some experience in handling complaints involving ticketing actions. The complainants usually alleged that they had left their vehicles at an unauthorised place for a very short time and without actually ever causing obstruction to pedestrians or road traffic - but they were given parking tickets anyway.

I feel that, when enforcing the law, we should be reasonably flexible in respect to minor infringements, especially now when people find themselves in straitened circumstances and under pressure. Any lack of sympathy will certainly cause resentment.

I believe that we cannot afford to turn a blind eye to people's feelings. We should consider the different levels of deterrence available to us when dealing with what the public considers a minor technical infringement.

In dealing with traffic offences we must take into consideration the spirit of Selective Traffic Enhancement Policy and if we have the discretion, in selected areas, to give warnings instead of summonses and fixed penalty tickets, we should do so - especially in the busiest areas.

We could give the driver a break and advise him where he could have parked without breaking the law. If there is obvious obstruction to pedestrians or traffic, he should be given an explanation and at least a severe warning. Only when he refuses to move, should he be given a ticket. But, it goes without saying that, any driver behaving in a reckless way with complete disregard to public safety is not deserving of any clemency whatsoever.

In short, I urge my frontline colleagues to be as flexible as they can be when enforcing the law. Do not be afraid of showing a little sympathy and kindness. People will notice. It will be appreciated. There will be fewer complaints. Our image will be enhanced.

(This article is by CPC member, Station Sergeant Lee Ka-sing of Tin Sum Division)