The Postal Service is flexing its immunity muscle. On Feb. 1, Scene Magazine reported that the U.S. Postal Service in Cleveland is refusing to pay $700 worth of tickets from moving violations. According to the report, mail carriers have received two school-zone speeding citations and five red light violations -- and they have no intention of paying any of them.
"USPS Senior Litigation Counsel Jennifer S. Breslin sent the city a chilly letter citing the Postal Clause of the U.S. Constitution and the Postal Reorganization Act," Scene reports. Despite cameras effectively "catching" the culprits breaking the motor vehicle laws, Breslin made it quite clear that the Post Office won't be paying any fines.
Postal Service immunity is something that was put in place that allows the company -- as a whole -- to be exempt from state and local regulations. This doesn't mean that postal service workers can go around and break the law intentionally and get away with it -- it just means that they don't have to pay tickets... or at least, that's how Breslin understands it.
"The Postal Service enjoys federal immunity from state and local regulation," wrote Breslin. "The Postal Service requires its employees to obey all traffic laws and rules while operating Postal Service vehicles. However, the state and/or local ordinances imposing penalties and fines cannot be enforced as against the Postal Service," she continued.
Should the Postal Service have immunity?
© Effie Orfanides 2013
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