While he may be speedy behind the wheel, David Simon isn’t so fast at paying his bills.
The television writer best known for creating “The Wire” recently made news for his online feud with the Department of Transportation over a school speed-zone ticket he received early one July morning.
It’s been more than 30 days since he got the ticket and it’s now late, according to a review of the violation by Gothamist. If the fine remains unpaid, Simon could be subjected to a $25 penalty. After 75 days, an additional interest fee is added each month until the fine is paid.
In an expletive-laden response following publication, Simon wrote to Gothamist that he mailed the payment in the day he received it. City officials said, as of Friday evening, the ticket had not been paid.
On X, the site formerly known as Twitter, Simon called New York an “off-brand city” for charging him a fee when school is not in session. School speed-zone cameras have been turned on 24/7 all year, since last August.
The DOT posted “delete your account” in response to Simon and a firestorm ensued.
Hundreds of people replied, reminding Simon that New York City’s speed cameras are part of a state and city effort to reduce speeding and deadly crashes.
The DOT responded online, as Simon continued to rail against the policy, that the speed limit across New York City is 25 miles per hour. The agency added that “10% of people die when hit at 23 MPH. 25% die when hit at 32 MPH.”
Simon admitted he was driving 36 miles per hour. He has since blocked the DOT on Twitter.
“By saying something as simple as ‘delete your account,’ we knew that that would be something that people would respond to,” said Nick Benson, a department spokesperson, who added that he came up with the message. “They would find it funny. They would really help amplify the messages that followed.”
The site Streetsblog confirmed that speedy Simon also has 16 school speeding tickets in his home city, Baltimore. It also…
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