Toward the end of each month, you may hear people who are pulled over complain about police officers needing to meet a ticket quota.
As of today, that practice is illegal in the state.
鈥淏y comprehensively assessing stops or interactions, we can ensure that officers are performing effectively and ethically 鈥� without pressure of meeting meaningless numerical targets,鈥� said Robert Butler, president of the Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police in for the bill.
The bipartisan legislation, SB114, bans citation minimums from being used as performance metrics for police officers. Quotas can no longer be used to determine promotions, transfers or disciplinary actions within law enforcement agencies.
At least 26 other states have banned the practice, according to the .
Representative Kevin Miller, R-Newark, supported and introduced its companion legislation in the House. He said the law will allow police officers to use their own discretion on whether infractions warrant a ticket or a warning.
鈥淭hey shouldn鈥檛 have some arbitrary number put down on them,鈥� he said.
Arguments against quotas
As a former Ohio state trooper, Miller said he knows from experience that quotas are not necessary for proactive police work.
He said ticket quotas place an emphasis on quantity rather than quality. Many times, he believes, they are instituted not in the interest of public safety, but instead in the interest of money.
鈥淸SB114] takes away some of the abilities for these municipalities to generate revenue on the backs of our law enforcement men and women, which shouldn't be happening,鈥� Miller said. 鈥淭hey should be out there doing what they need to do to ensure public safety, not fill the coffers of the local municipality.鈥�
In testimony, some law enforcement organizations complained quotas take officers away from more important tasks, like investigating violent crimes. Other organizations, like the National Police Accountability Project, argued that ticket quotas lead to more use of force from police.
鈥淭here is no safety-based justification to them at all,鈥� said George Sakellakis with the Ohio Patrolmen鈥檚 Benevolent Association.
Prevalence in Ohio
Miller said he doesn鈥檛 know the exact number of departments that used ticket quotas to evaluate officers鈥� performance. But, Leonard Mazzola, a former patrolman with the city of Independence in northeast Ohio, testified that the practice is still widely used across the state.
Though, Mazzola said, the quotas are largely 鈥渦nwritten鈥�.
鈥淎gencies frequently provide a monetary incentive based on tickets written, paying overtime hours for traffic enforcement. They use ticket production to make employment decisions, like preferential shift picks, the ability to serve on different units and even just the ability to remain employed,鈥� he said in .
Under the new law, officers can report their police departments to the Attorney General鈥檚 Office for explicit or perceived quotas. The office will investigate each case to determine whether a quota is being enforced.
鈥淚f there is a probable cause, they will issue a cease and desist order,鈥� Miller said.
Opposition to the law
While the law has gotten a wide range of support, some law enforcement agencies aren鈥檛 on board.
The Central Ohio Chiefs Association argued the law does more than just ban ticket quotas. The organization agrees with the intent of the bill 鈥� to eliminate revenue-driven quotas 鈥� but not the language of the law. The association says the way the law is written, it also removes oversight for underperforming officers and discourages proactive crime prevention.
鈥淲hen police departments are discouraged from monitoring arrest activity or holding officers accountable for failing to act, crime grows,鈥� Chief Mike Crispen wrote in. 鈥淣ot because officers don鈥檛 care, but because the leadership tools that keep enforcement consistent and effective are suddenly off-limits.鈥�
Miller disagrees, arguing officers can still be held accountable for not working. He sees the law as a way to increase public trust in police departments across the state.
鈥淭hey don't want their law enforcement officers to be just ticket writing machines, not having discretion and just filling the coffers of the local municipality.鈥�
