I’ve now encountered this story both on NPR and WTOP: Maryland is running a pilot program for police officers where scanning the barcode on the person’s driver’s license automagically fills out part of the ticket for name and associated information. Automation is great, but I have yet to hear of any sort of project like this where the Powers That Be don’t take the opportunity to remove the discretion of the person being automated.

So I wonder – what’s the process here? Does the officer indicate before or after the swipe why s/he pulled this person over? If before, can they decide after looking at that person’s record that perhaps they deserve a break? I was fortunate enough about a year ago to have an officer look at my clean history and decide that perhaps I was as clueless as I seemed and really had just mis-read the speed limit sign. Would that not be a possibility under this system, either because it won’t allow it or because the officer’s higher-ups will scrutinize, question, and criticize any time a person is let off?

Perhaps that’s for the best anyway if it results in an end to unfair and silly “professional courtesy” where some are more equal than others.