New ordinance to give NOPD officers more discretion on traffic arrests

By Fritz Esker
Contributing Writer

On July 23, the New Orleans City Council’s Criminal Justice Committee unanimously passed Ordinance No. 32,311, which would give New Orleans Police Department officers the discretion on whether or not to arrest people for a variety of traffic offenses.

The ordinance will amend the city’s existing law so officers can issue citations instead of make arrests for offenses like driving with a suspended, expired or revoked driver’s license. People who drive drunk, engage in reckless driving and are guilty of hit and run accidents will still be arrested per Louisiana state law.

Councilmember-at-Large Helena Moreno and Councilman Jared Brossett proposed the ordinance. The duo began considering the change after a June arrest of former City Councilman Oliver Thomas. Thomas was arrested for having a suspended license and an unpaid ticket after his car was hit by another vehicle in St. Charles Parish. Officers waited at the hospital for Thomas for six hours so they could book him.

“This ordinance represents an effort to move our city forward with policies that make sense, and in order to do that, we need to stop jailing people just because they’re having issues with their driver’s licenses,” said Councilmember-at-Large Helena Moreno. “We want a NOPD that’s focused on preventing violence and property crimes, and this will enable them to do that.”

New Orleans Police Chief Michael Harrison spoke to the committee about these issues and why the new ordinance would assist his officers. If they are not required by law to make arrests for some traffic offenses, that gives them more time to be on the streets preventing and addressing more serious crimes.

“We are always looking for ways to be more efficient, more effective…And not put us in a position where we’re doing something that’s unnecessary,” said Harrison.

Harrison testified that the booking process can vary depending on the location of the arrest and the situation at the jail upon arrival. He said it is never less than an hour to an hour and a half for each arrest.

The police chief also acknowledged that the department still takes traffic offenses seriously, and feels that it is important for his officers to keep New Orleans streets safe for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians.

“We want…to make sure…that we don’t create more harm than good, but that we’re actually creating a safe environment by educating the public and making sure they have the right credentials – a valid driver’s license that isn’t revoked, suspended, or expired – but then making sure we’re effective in the way we deliver police services and not wasting inordinate amounts of time,” said Harrison.

New Orleans City Council President Jason Williams said this ordinance is a step towards creating an approach to criminal justice that is both data-driven and humane.

“Increasingly, jurisdictions across the country are transitioning away from a heavy-handed, scorched-earth approach to crime and punishment to a more person-centered approach, which focuses on removing barriers to compliance so that we get people out of the system with guidance instead of setting traps for them to fall into,” Williams said.

Neither NOPD or OPSO could produce data on the number of traffic arrests officers make per year as of press time.

This article originally published in the August 6, 2018 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.