Most people are not happy after receiving a traffic ticket and wouldn’t even consider sending a thank you note afterward.
But that’s not the case for one Council Bluffs resident. On Tuesday, the Council Bluffs Police Department shared a thank you note they received from someone who says they appreciate the reminder, in the form of a red light camera ticket, to drive safely.
"We appreciate our letter writer for sending us these thoughtful words and we hope sharing them with you reminds you to drive safely today!” officials wrote in their post with a picture of the handwritten thank you letter.
Read the full letter below:
“Dear Council Bluffs Police Department,
I am fairly certain that your department receives very few notes, such as this. However, I need to thank you! I honestly do not recall this event. Nobody drives my car except me, so I know it was me. Clearly, I was not paying attention. I don’t know what I was doing and concentrating on while I was driving – and that scares the hell out of me!
A $100 ticket is minor, if I consider that I could have hurt or killed someone, I cannot imagine that scenario. What if I had my granddaughter and she was hurt? Like I said, It scared me! There are tons of ‘what if’s.’ I generally think I am a good, safe driver – but now I see I need to be much better. Focus on driving, while driving – 100 percent of the time.
Thank you for the wake up call by this citation! I have paid it in full – copy enclosed. Many people are anti-police (establishment, etc.) I am not and never will be. I am so glad we have these cameras in place. I wish they could be at every light! I apologize – it was not intentional. I’m glad to have just a ticket – rather than worst case. I promise to be alert/aware. Thank you, [name redacted].”
The letter was praised by some who commented on the police department’s post.
“This could be a wake up call for all of us. Sometimes we tend to be a little distracted without even realizing it. Thanks for posting!” one person wrote.
“It’s nice when people recognize and accept responsibility for their actions,” wrote another person.
It's rare to get a thank you for writing a ticket, and it's even more rare for someone to send us a thank you note about...
Posted by Council Bluffs Police Department on Tuesday, February 23, 2016
