By Sgt. Jack Nash
PIO OCSO
Photo courtesy OCSO
Why We Write Tickets During the Holidays
Every holiday season, our deputies hear the same criticism:
“Why are you writing tickets during the holidays?”
“Why not just give warnings?”
“People are just trying to get where they’re going.”
Here’s the part that often gets missed.
Holiday traffic enforcement is not about revenue, quotas (which does NOT exist), or ruining anyone’s celebration. It is about preventing crashes, injuries, and deaths during the busiest travel periods of the year.
During the holidays, our roadways are more congested, emotions run higher, schedules are tighter, and patience is thinner. Those conditions create a perfect storm for unsafe and reckless driving, speeding, aggressive lane changes, distracted driving, and impaired operation.
What many do not see is what happens before a citation is ever written.
Our Traffic Team educates first.
Deputies regularly stop drivers to explain the violation, discuss the danger it creates, and encourage safer behavior. In many cases, when enforcement is necessary, deputies use their discretion to reduce fines or cite a lesser offense that still addresses the unsafe behavior.
This approach holds drivers accountable while often saving them money and points on their license.
That discretion is not an obligation it is a professional courtesy grounded in judgment, experience, and fairness.
However, when a driver’s behavior puts others at immediate risk, enforcement is required.
Reckless or aggressive driving does not become acceptable because it’s a holiday. Families, children, visitors, and residents all deserve to make it home safely.
Accountability and education are not opposites. They work together.
Slow traffic down. Reduce crashes. Save lives.
If you receive a citation, it is not personal. It is preventive. And in many cases, it reflects restraint that the public never sees.
Drive patient. Drive safe. Arrive alive.
Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office Traffic Team
