Pine Prairie Audit Finds Problems with Missing Traffic Fines, Citation Procedures

Investigative auditors examining Pine Prairie’s procedures for handling traffic citations found at least $950 in fines were not deposited into the Village’s bank account between March and May 2017, the Legislative Auditor said in a report released today.

The Village’s police clerk was responsible for receiving, recording, processing, and depositing the fines, the state auditor said. Auditors compared Village records with those from individuals who paid the fines in question and found the clerk did not record and deposit all the cash received. In addition, auditors said, the clerk altered public records to conceal the cash that was collected but not deposited.

Auditors also found that, between January 2016 and June 2017, the clerk improperly reduced moving violations to non-moving violations and improperly adjusted traffic fine amounts. Auditors could not find any evidence that the clerk was authorized to make these changes, which means she may have violated state law.

The examination showed as well that Village police officers issued 58 citations to people driving with suspended licenses, but failed to follow state law, which requires officers to revoke an offender’s driving privileges, issue a citation with a mandated court appearance, and remove the vehicle’s license plate. Auditors found instead that offenders were allowed to drive to the Village hall and pay an appearance bond fee of $100 per offense. In addition, the Village had no documentation to indicate that offenders’ driving privileges were revoked, that license plates were removed, or that they were required to appear in court.

Auditors also noted that the Village appeared to be improperly classified as a village. Under state law, municipalities with more than 5,000 residents are classified as cities, those with 1,000 to 5,000 residents are towns, and those with fewer than 1,000 residents are villages.

Pine Prairie has 1,610 residents, which would indicate it should be classified as a town. State law requires the Board of Aldermen to adopt a resolution asking the governor to change the Village’s classification to the appropriate one.