The Houston Police Department has launched an internal investigation into the ticket-writing habits of a senior police officer after the KHOU 11 I-Team began asking questions about his behavior on the road.
David Carter, an officer on the force since 2002, has been temporarily relieved of duty, meaning he no longer has a badge or police powers during the probe.
The I-Team discovered Carter wrote several speeding tickets to drivers without ever pulling them over.
Emanuel Morfin was baffled when he received a speeding ticket by certified mail for doing 90 mph in a 60 mph zone on the North Freeway. Morfin said he wasn't anywhere near the area at the time.
"Actually I was down south in South Texas, so I'm like, well how am I speeding in Houston if I'm out of town?" Morfin said. "It was kind of ridiculous I was kind of shocked."
The I-Team discovered it wasn't the first time Carter sent tickets by certified mail without ever making a traffic stop.
"You have an officer who is abusing their discretionary authority," said Criminal Justice Professor Larry Karson with the University of Houston-Downtown. "You have no idea who's driving that car. You're sending that ticket to a registered owner, who may or may not be behind the wheel."
The I-Team caught up with Carter at a parking lot near his north Houston home.
I-Team: "How can you write somebody up for speeding when you don't even know who's speeding?"
Carter: "I have no comment. I have no comment."
I-Team: "Why wouldn't you have any comment?"
Carter: "I have no comment, it's under investigation right now."
Karson said there's another problem—one that puts the public at risk. According to records, Carter wrote that he paced the alleged violator in his personal car, not in his patrol car.
"He's actually making the situation worse, because what he's doing is he's becoming another vehicle flying down at 90 miles an hour and no one knows that he is a police officer," Karson said. "All they know it's another crazy person on the highway."
The I-Team again tried to get answers from the 13-year HPD veteran, but got nowhere.
I-Team: "Can you explain that, sir? That's a reasonable question and the public deserves an answer."
"Excuse me," he said, walking to his car.
Carter is being paid during the investigation, but must remain home during work hours while it continues. As for the citizens he mailed tickets, the city's legal department ultimately dismissed the cases.
"I do not believe the citizens had any knowledge of the citations. Therefore, I did not think it was in the interest of justice to prosecute the cases and asked that all of the citations be dismissed," said Randy Zamora, criminal law division chief with city's legal department.
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