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WEST JORDAN — If a West Jordan police officer stops a driver for a mechanical issue, like a broken turn signal, they may not get a ticket but a voucher.
It is all part of an educational initiative sponsored by Lights On! and the West Jordan Police Department.
The department hopes the initiative opens a new level of conversation about the fact that, ultimately, not all cops are out to get a driver. In these cases, the officer will have a voucher to help pay for the broken part.
"It all comes down to this: money," West Jordan Police Chief Ken Wallentine said.
Wallentine said maybe a driver knew their turn signal was out and was trying to make it to payday, or maybe they did not know they had a tail light out until seeing flashing lights pulling up behind them.
He said that the sinking feeling that a ticket is coming is getting a plot twist through this initiative, where an officer may hand a driver a $250-voucher, instead, to help get the problem fixed at a local partnering business.
"And it may be, 'Today, I have to choose between paying down my kid's school lunch balance, or I may have to choose between a book that I need for a college class. Or I may just not have a choice because I just don't have the money," Wallentine said.
Lights On! is in over 21 states. This kind of program is a first for Utah.
"Instead of them getting that ticket, they get this voucher. The wow effect happens. That conversation starts," said Sherman Patterson, vice president of Lights On!
According to the initiative, they hope to expand their reach into more police departments in Utah and across the U.S.
