Who's Gonna Drive You

A state trooper in Boston gave out a $100 ticket to a couple that was driving in the emergency lane. The catch? They were doing so to get around rush-hour traffic because the woman was in active labor:

Jennifer Davis was stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Nov. 18, her contractions just 3 minutes apart. Her husband, John, was trying to appear calm for his wife's sake, driving in the breakdown lane of Route 2. They pulled up behind a state trooper to ask whether they could continue using the lane to reach the next exit, near Alewife Station.

Not only did the trooper say no, he gave them a $100 citation for driving in the breakdown lane, made them wait for their citation while he finished writing someone else's ticket, and even seemed to ask for proof of pregnancy, Jennifer Davis said.

"He said, 'What's under your jacket?' I said, 'My belly,' " Davis said. "He waited and gestured with his head like, 'OK, let's see it.' He waited for me to unzip my jacket. I mean, it was so clear that I was pregnant."

Now, I have to say, while the demand to see her belly was uncalled for, I can't really find the trooper completely at fault. The article notes that he offered twice to call an ambulance, which any informed healthcare consumer knows is the fastest way to get medical attention 99.9% of the time, but the couple declined. He also used an option where the citation was mailed to them instead of done on the spot, which saved time. And they still made it to the hospital with plenty of time to spare, the birth coming about 5 hours later.

As a PR exercise, this wasn't the best way to handle things. He should have just told them to move on but stay out of the emergency lane. Yes, two previous troopers had given them the OK to use the lane (carefully) when traffic backed up, but that's still a very dangerous thing, especially with a woman in labor. The couple were also stupid to refuse an ambulance, which would've gotten them to the hospital much faster.

Bet the ticket is thrown out, though.

Source