A City Commissioner calling the chief of police to get out of a traffic ticket is that kind of trite, light public corruption people joke about, but you never actually hear anyone getting punished for it.
According to the investigation, Carollo was pulled over for a traffic infraction in Coconut Grove back in August.
The investigation shows that, after being pulled over, Carollo called the chief, who subsequently called the area commander, who then told dispatchers to have the officer call him. The officer let Carollo go with a warning. The determination found that Carollo may have used or intended to exploit his position to influence police officials, which is a violation of the Conflict of Interest and Code of Ethics Ordinance.Though, Carollo's attorney claimed that the city commissioner just decided to call the chief of police about a separate matter entirely. Apparently he maintains that while he was pulled over he just was so curious as to why "several police vehicles and a city recycling truck were blocking the road" he decided he needed to call the police chief right then and there.
The case will now head to a public hearing.
The Ethics Commission also whacked North Miami Mayor Andre Pierre for using city soccer fields without paying. As we reported back in April, Pierre and his friends played dozens of games on the city fields to the tune of $29,000 worth of rental fees without forking over a dime.
The commission found probable cause that Pierre had "exploited his position" in direct violation of a resolution passed by the city commission. That charge now goes to a public hearing.
