A letter to the editor was recently published in the Keene Sentinel by David Crawford. In it, he expresses appreciation for Robin Hooders, the people who save motorists from being ticketed for parking at expired meters by placing coins in said meters before the meter maids can reach them to write a ticket.
However, if you read the version the Sentinel published, you did not read the whole thing. David reached out to let us know the letter had a few things that were cut out by the newspaper’s editors, including his naming of former KPD captain Peter “Sturdy” Thomas and a mention of tax dollars. Here’s the original version of his letter, as he sent it to the Sentinel:
Did you get saved from a ticket?
There are people calling themselves “robinhooders” and they are saving people from getting parking tickets in Keene.
Here is how they do it: They find the parking meter person, sometimes by two-way radios that they are in constant communication by. And, after finding the meter person, one will be “one step ahead” of the meter person and sort-of beat the meter person to the expired meter, and then pay the meter, thus thwarting a would-be ticket.
Then there is one robinhooder who follows behind, putting a business-type card that explains to the recipient of the ticket save, that their meters ran out and what happened.
Here is a site that has more info and pictures of the cards, and grateful people who were saved from tickets: facebook.com/KeeneRobinHood?ref=ts&fref=ts.
I don’t understand why the “city of Keene” seems to be perturbed about it, when, it seems, people do like being saved from tickets (as can be seen at the above referenced Facebook site).
It is my understanding the city hired a man, a former Keene police officer, to follow around the robinhooders and stop them from saving people from tickets.
So there you have it: happy and grateful recipients being saved from parking tickets and the city hiring an ex-Keene police captain to put a stop to it, thus costing the city money.
What do you all make of that?
I like being saved from tickets! Why does the city want it to stop?
David Crawford
36 Marlboro St.
Keene
