Michigan gets ticket for warming up car unattended

[dead0man]

$128!

If we didn't have so many stupid laws we wouldn't need so many cops who apparently have nothing else to do than steal money from people and give them tickets for warming up their car in Michigan on the 5th of January.

[Meclazine for Israel]

You would get the sack if you did that in most workplaces because of safety violations.

I think the main risk would be children getting involved in this environment.

[dead0man]

All those toddlers running around outside in Michigan on the 5th of Jan?

[Meclazine for Israel]

I know, but you would probably find its a directive right across the country now.

And that is because some child was killed when an unattended car with the motor running rolled from its stationary position.

It's a strange law.

[Green Line]

Cant do the time, dont do the crime

[Meclazine for Israel]

In Australia, it is illegal to leave your car unlocked.

http://www.lifehacker.com.au/2015/08/is-it-legal-to-leave-your-car-door-unlocked/

The incidence of unattended rolling cars killing children is not high, but it does happen.

http://metro.co.uk/2016/09/21/boy-13-killed-after-being-run-over-by-unattended-car-6142487/

When conducting safety analysis, one of the primary considerations with any activity is potential consequences.

In this case, single to multiple fatality of children.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

This is illegal under Minneapolis ordinance too. It's actually a pretty sound environmental policy. Leaving a car idling is actually more polluting than driving it for that period of time: http://www.minneapolismn.gov/environment/air/airquality_antiidling_home

And then of course there's also the risk of theft. Normally I don't think the state should try to force people to not be stupid and do things that put their own property at risk, but auto theft is a massive drain on public resources, drains money from insurance companies thus increasing premiums, and increases the stats of auto theft in the area raising your neighbors' premiums as well, so it makes perfect sense for somewhere to try to discourage people from doing behavior that makes it risky. Especially in a city with as high a rate of auto theft as Minneapolis.