Man trying to fix broken windshield gets ticket for having broken windshield

Denver resident Nick Berlin found himself between a rock and a hard place in August, when he received a traffic ticket for driving an “unsafe vehicle” yards away from the automotive shop where he was headed to have it repaired.

KUSA reports that Berlin, whose windshield had been broken when someone throw a rock through it the night before, was stumped. “It was definitely a bummer,” he told KUSA.

KUSA looked into the incident as part of their Citation Nation segment, and found that his ticket was issued at 3:39 p.m., in the parking lot of the repair shop. His appointment was for 3:30 p.m. KUSA has also reported on a speed enforcement zone in Morrison, Colorado that is responsible for more than half of the town’s funds. KUSA has pointed out that other towns pull in as much as 90% of revenue from traffic tickets.

A representative from the Adams County Sheriff Department’s office told KUSA that the officer was acting per his discretion, as is his right. But, apparently, they’re letting him off the hook:

The Denver Post reported last year that traffic tickets in Denver are a lucrative endeavor—in 2014, the city made 53% more from citations than it did in 2009.

Danielle Wiener-Bronner is a news reporter.