Posted on 03/01/2017 6:43:51 PM PST by nickcarraway
Glen Carr pulls out his cell phone as soon as he rounds the corner outside the Miami-Dade County Courthouse. He knows he'll spot them soon.
Then, after he walks just a half-block more, the 40-year-old with a military buzzcut stops and points.
"Look, there are two I can see right now that are illegally parked," he says, chuckling softly and gesturing up NW First Avenue.
Sure enough, two black-and-white Miami Shores Police cruisers sit on either side of an intersection. Both are in crosshatched areas directly in front of no-parking warnings. Carr crosses the street to snap photos that show the signs and the cars' license plates.
"They always park right here," Carr says. "You can see the signs. It's clearly no parking."
For the past six months, Carr has been waging a one-man war on cops who flout parking laws. He hasn't struggled to find scofflaws. Every morning, he walks from his downtown apartment to the Metromover stop outside the courthouse. And nearly every day, he documents a half-dozen police cars hanging out in illegal spots.
"I feel like I'm doing the most I can to help the police officers."
Since August, Carr has sent at least 125 complaints, with photographs and details of where and when he found the illegally parked vehicles, to departments around Miami-Dade County. He's been berated by some officers, ignored by internal affairs investigators, and, more recently, validated by the independent Civilian Investigative Panel (CIP), which ruled that 15 Miami Police Department cops had broken regulations.
But Carr is far from a bomb-throwing, anti-cop anarchist. He's an active-duty Army major working toward an MBA at the University of Miami who says he just wants police to follow the rules like everyone else.
"It's not like I'm against them. I just want them to be better at what they do," Carr says. "I feel they don't hold each other accountable."
Carr grew up in Montana and attended Montana State University for two years before he dropped out to join the Army. "I decided to join the military to finish my degree in there," he says.
He specialized in logistics, serving in Colorado, Georgia, and Alaska before being deployed to Afghanistan in 2002. He served nine months at Forward Operating Base Salerno, a remote, battle-scarred base near the Pakistan border that later gained fame when former NFL star Pat Tillman was killed there by friendly fire in 2004. "It was a rough assignment just a few months after 9/11," Carr says.
A Soldier Has Photographed More Than 100 Illegally Parked Cop Cars in Miami (6) Photo by Glen Carr But he loved his work in the Army. He returned to the United States to train as an officer at Fort Bragg, where he joined the 82nd Airborne Division and spent seven years "jumping out of planes," he says. He later served two stints in Iraq and an assignment at the Pentagon.
One day in Maryland about four years ago, Carr was teaching his 16-year-old daughter how to drive when two police cars went rocketing by on the interstate, doing 80 in a 55 mph zone without lights on.
Carr began looking into state law and couldn't find any reason a police officer should speed on the interstate without emergency lights. So he and his daughter complained, and the local police promised to look into it. "I was able to show my daughter, hey, they were wrong; the police can be wrong too," Carr says. "But they have to be accountable."
Thus was born his new obsession: As he traveled around Virginia and Maryland on his way to and from the Pentagon, he began snapping photos of cops breaking parking and traffic laws and then filed complaints. He knows the infractions are minor, but Carr believes they hint at a larger problem.
"If a police officer is parking in a handicapped spot or in front of a fire hydrant because he's running late," he says, "then what else is he doing wrong?"
A Soldier Has Photographed More Than 100 Illegally Parked Cop Cars in Miami (2) photo by Glen Carr
When Carr moved to Miami in August to study at UM, he wasn't prepared for cops' blatant disregard for the letter of the law. "It's much worse here than anywhere else I've lived," he says.
Local cops haven't been entirely receptive to his photos and complaints. Some have jumped from their cars, demanding to know why he's photographing them.
"I've had a bunch of lieutenants and captains call me, arguing that police officers are allowed to park in no-parking zones if they want to," Carr says. "I asked them for the statutes that say so, and they can never produce any."
Carr does have the statute, though: Florida 316.072, which says all government vehicles — including police — must obey traffic and parking laws unless they're in pursuit of a suspect, responding to an emergency, or dealing with a fire. Neither being late for court nor desperately needing Starbucks coffee is a legal exception.
A Soldier Has Photographed More Than 100 Illegally Parked Cop Cars in Miami (4) Photo by Glen Carr
Some smaller police forces have quickly responded to his complaints, Carr says, and promised to counsel officers to obey parking rules. But others have gone to comical lengths to ignore him. After submitting dozens of complaints to Miami Police, he began calling the internal affairs officers for an update on his cases. Magically, all the complaints had disappeared.
"I don't know if they were losing them on purpose or by accident," Carr says.
That's when he went to the CIP, the independent board that investigates complaints against Miami cops. In January, the board found that 15 city officers he'd photographed in no-parking zones had broken state law and department rules by illegally parking. (The CIP did clear the IA of any wrongdoing in its investigation of Carr's complaints.)
The ruling was a validation of Carr's work — but the CIP's judgments are only recommendations.
But that won't dissuade him from calling out the police. After he finishes photographing the two Miami Shores cruisers outside the courthouse, he notices a North Miami Beach Police SUV sitting at the other end of the block in a no-parking zone. He angles for the perfect photo of the violation.
"I feel like I'm doing the most I can to help the police officers," he says. "I want them to follow the rules."
Cops don’t consider their patrol cars illegally parked. Many years ago, while at the counter of a cafe with police, I questioned their parking at a meter for lunch and not depositing coins. I did not address the policemen directly but was overheard talking to a companion. Here was their unsolicited answer: “That’s the privilege of driving a black and white car.”
People can be so narrow-focused. The bigger picture is, cops carry guns. Big guns. That they don’t take into coffee shops or anywhere unless they need them. But they are there all the same, just in case. There are also thousands of dollars of taxes-purchased computer and radio stuff inside in plain sight. So, if they left their car in a parking garage while they served a non-emergency citizen, how is that safer (or more cost effective) for the public?
(2004-2008 figures:’’ ‘’ ‘’ Violent ‘’ Property
Total in parking lots or garages 401,920 7.3% 2,018,180 11.2%
Commercial parking lot/garage 110,620 2.0 413,050 2.3
Noncommercial parking lot/garage 213,540 3.9 864,190 4.8
Apartment/townhouse parking lot/garage 77,760 1.4 740,950 4.1
https://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=tp&tid=44
No this can really tick you off depending on the situation. I used to live right behind a police station. Everyday right before the police were off duty, they would speed, blow through red lights and sit in their own parking lots talking to each other over their cars loud speakers. They wanted to be the first into the station after the shift ended. So just before 7a, 3pm, and 11pm it happened. Can you imagine every day at 11 pm having 4 cop cars talking to each other over their bullhorns. You couldn’t sleep and sometimes it would go on for half an hour. They also ran red lights. Their lights would go on, they would cross the intersection then they would turn them off. They would speed down to the next intersection and do it again until they got to the station.
Really it got quite dangerous and annoying. One day I called the cops on the cops about the noise. It was funny. 30 seconds after I hung up. A sergeant went out to the parking lot and shouted, “Hey you F—ckheads, shut up, the neighbors are complaining.” They did shut up and he went back inside.
Thanks for all you do
Actually in my state the law exempts poloce and fire from minor violations when performing official functions and duties. Like going to a police call at the Target. None of what I described falls outside of that.
I know I’m not going to change your mind but you’ll notice I never mentioned going to get coffee or buying lunch or going to flirt with the checkout girl at the grocery store.
Firefighters get the same complaints when they drive the big fire truck to go buy their groceries, some people don’t understand why they bring the big truck just to go buy their groceries, when it’s because it makes no sense to get dispatched to a fire and have to drive back to the station to get your truck.
Hahha..voice to text got me. I was trying to say through my hoarse voice from having this cold, even after I showed them my badge.
I would not be a ‘hater’, not at all, policing is a tough job.
In my life I have seen double standards and ‘professional courtesy’ in action, three times.
When I confronted the police in those situations I was threatened with violence, and or arrest.
Being threatened for doing what is right left a huge impression on me.
Just say’n.
Dirty cops should be shot.
They are the scum of the earth.
I doubt there is a city in this country that does not allow police cars to park illegally on official duty. It's just a matter of effective use of taxpayer money to allow them to park illegally rather than the expense of cops looking for or paying for parking.
Both the author and the busybody parking crusader are obviously blinded by an anti-cop bias.
I don’t remember referring to you as a hater (O dodn’t go back and reread my posts) so if you dod not mean that no need to reply to that comment.
All I ask is people remember police are humans wearing uniforms (uniforms are just costumes that denote a profession or job) capable of all the good n bad that any other slice of the population is capable of.
So....if a cop acts like a jerk he may be a jerk, or he may have found out his mom has cancer last night, or he may just need to be left alone at that very moment for a “tactical reason” that there is not time to explain. (Have asked a lady to step out from in front of me and wait to ask her question because I was expecting a guy with a knife to emerge from a door to a bar and she wouldn’t budge. I had to curse at her to get her to move and said I didn’t want her bewtween me and the guy if I had to shoot him...she gave me “the look” that I was an ass and she didn’t believe what I was saying. Moments later guy came out with the knife and after he was in cuffs I looked at her and shrugged my shoulders)
If a cop drives bad he could be a horrible driver or he could be reading his computer in the way to a call or he could be on phine with a victim while driving to a call.
If anyone is not happy with a cop’s behavior Inwould wait until they were done with what they were doing and say “excuse me, I don’t understand why you did/do XYZ. Can you explain it to me so it makes sense?”
If the cop acts like an ass then just give his Sgt a call and explain you just wanted to understand whats up and why XYZ was done. If his Sgt. is an ass....you have a bujch if assholes for cops in your area and I cannot help you.
I will admit I had a young kid come up to me and recently adter I was working a protest for about 6 hours and say “can I ask you a question Officer?” I immediately thought it was going to be another jerk giving me crap about my outer vest carrier I wear so I can keep all the weight of the gear off my hips and lower back and spread it across my shoulders (hope to avoid back surgery & bladder problems decades of wearing a gunbelt does to guys)
I said “Sure...unless you are you going to say something stupid like everyone else today.”
Poor 19 y.o. said “I just wanted to ask if you guys needed some coffee because we are headed to Starbucks.”
I had to apologize for being an ass...apologizing when you are wrong is a great way to keep yourself humble and accountable.
I wonder how many yearly physical fitness tests that tub of goo has gotten out of with his rank & pull? These douchebag anti-coppers don’t sit on their high horses without some sort of double standard ready to smack them in their personal lives. If that pic is of the “active duty major” it looks like standards have dropped below bottom of the barrel for officers in the army. He looks like “Chester the molester” and I would need to see his govt issued military id to believe he’s a major in any branch.
The Kings men are above the law it appears. They serve us, and should obey our laws.
Cops park illegally, wrong, in weird places and manners because they need to be able to get to their car rapido of an emergency happens.
***************
Not an emergency... lazy cops don’t want to arrive at the courthouse a few minutes early and park properly ... they might have to walk a few minutes... THE HORROR... but why should they when they can park illegally? It’s not as if they’ll get a ticket or something.... Besides the rules are for you.. and you are not them... and don’t you forget it.
Suspenders.
You need suspenders for that belt.
Take care.
Miami is pretty much a Yankee city and like other Yankee cities, it is highly corrupt and run by, of course, Democrats. The saving grace is that Miami itself is a very small city. North Miami Beach is its own city. They are all corrupt and basically Yankee cities full of New York expatriates and refugees who try mightily to convert the whole state into Massachusetts or Brooklyn.
A Major, who loves the childlike life on a military base. This is the kind of guy who you don’t want in your neighborhood association.
Who knows what has set him off, but in this case, cop cars, for all sorts of reasons, are often allowed to park in places nobody else can.
And that angry little major needs to work on that gut.
Jackass, after the last year. That has been the mantra of all the cop ambushers the last year. And of course, they get to decide who is dirty.
Either that or the good Major suffers from world-class OCD.
CC
No way! Suspenders are for old fat men like Bob Beckel...and I refuse to admit I am old!
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