A Michigan Man Got A $128 Ticket For Leaving His Car Running In A Driveway, Is This Too Much Policing?

A Michigan man got a $128 ticket for leaving his car running in his girlfriend’s driveway, and he is not at all pleased about it, posting an angry Facebook rant and generating tons of sympathy.

As WWJ-TV (Detroit) reported, Taylor Nicholas Trupiano, who also goes by “Nick Taylor,” stopped by his girlfriend’s house, in the Detroit suburb of Roseville, to drop off some diapers. During the “seven or eight” minutes he was inside, he left his car running. After all, Detroit can get nippy this time of year, and he wanted to keep his car warm.

Apparently, in Roseville, you’re not supposed to do that, as he found out the hard way: he returned to his car to find a $128 ticket.

In a Facebook rant that has since gone viral, Nick makes it clear what he thinks of the officer who gave him the ticket, as well as the Roseville Police Department in general, for giving him a $128 ticket for simply trying to stay warm.

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The problem with leaving your car running, as far as the Roseville Police Department sees it, is that it makes it an attractive target for thieves, says Roseville Police Chief James Berlin. This, in turn, drives up the town’s crime rate, puts officers in the position of having to track down stolen cars (perhaps even leading to high-speed chases), and drives up everyone’s insurance rates.

“I encourage our officers to write this ticket.”

Berlin also says that about five to ten cars get stolen this way from around Roseville every winter.

Roseville isn’t the only place where cops can, and will, ticket you for leaving your car running. “Dozens” of cities and towns across Michigan have similar ordinances, according to WXYZ (Detroit). Similar laws also exist in multiple other states, according to Juris Magazine. Most places, however, will make an exception for vehicles with remote start, since they can’t be driven without a key in the ignition.

While the reasoning behind the ticket may be sound, Nick thinks a $128 ticket for simply keeping his car warm is a bit much.

He’s not alone: most of the comments on his original post agree with Nick that he didn’t deserve a ticket.

Ray Gee: The f**k?!?! That’s stupid as hell!!!!
Alyssa Baginski: doesn’t he have better things to do???

Roger Pruett: Can a person leave a bicycle unattended on their own property?The police state that this country has become is alarming.

Other commenters haven’t been so sympathetic.

TR Quillin: Lesson learned BRO.

Roger Hayes: Sorry bro it’s against the law! It’s called “Attractive Nuisance”. It is stupid though!

In a follow-up post on Friday morning, Taylor stepped back a little from calling the cop who gave his ticket an unflattering name.

“I did want to say that I would like to retract my statement calling the officer a dips**t. Thinking it over, it wasn’t the appropriate thing to say because I do respect police officers for what they do for us everyday.”

Even though he’s backed off of using the D-word, he kept his original post up, simply because it’s gotten so much attention.

If it will help (it probably won’t), Nick has been getting offers from area lawyers to help him fight the ticket in court. Nick says he does intend to fight the ticket, but he thinks his odds of beating it are slim, considering he publicly called out the cop who wrote the ticket and called him a nasty name. He doesn’t think a judge is going to cut him much slack for that.

Do you believe a $128 ticket for leaving your car running is justified?

[Featured Image by Andrey_Popov/Shutterstock]