Lake Placid police ‘ticket’ drivers with cash surprises during holiday season
By Krystin Rae
Click here for updates on this story
LAKE PLACID, New York (WPTZ) — Sgt. Strack with the Lake Placid Police Department spent Monday patrolling traffic and sometimes issuing tickets.
While some of the drivers who got pulled over are guilty of common traffic violations, Strack and other members of the department aren’t only handing out tickets: this month, they’re also giving out second chances, sometimes paired with $100 cash.
“You get what’s coming to you and I definitely didn’t see this coming to me,” said one driver who was pulled over and unexpectedly given an envelope with cash.
The program started in 2020 after an anonymous secret Santa donated money to the Lake Placid Police Department. The kind gesture was enough to start a true season of giving within the department, with officers pitching in to give back to the community during the holiday season.
Since then, the same person has donated funds every year, and this time more people pitched in to donate a total of $4,000 for police to distribute among drivers in both Lake Placid and Saranac Lake for the first time.
“If someone gets pulled over by the police, they’re expecting what could be a negative interaction because they might drive away with a ticket,” said police chief Chuck Dobson. “This gives us an opportunity — at the officer’s discretion — to brighten someone’s day instead.”
The officers involved said they enjoy the opportunity to make drivers smile, particularly ahead of the holidays.
“I think it’s a good change of pace. Usually, we deal with people in their low moments and it’s a good chance to turn it around, make someone happy, and hopefully cheer them up for the holidays,” said Strack.
Officers in Saranac Lake are giving out $1,500 in funds to drivers as part of this year’s program.
“It’s nice to be able to go out, and opposed to giving someone a ticket to say, ‘Here, have a better day, here’s $100,’” said Saranac Lake Police Chief Darin Perrotte.
As these officers give back, the people “ticketed” say they’re planning to return the favor this holiday season.
“I’m going to give it to my guys so they can spend it on their families for Christmas since I’m the one in charge and they’re working,” said Tore King of the Lake Placid area. King plans on giving the unexpected money to some of his employees.
Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.
