Typo leads to suspended license, damaged credit for Bossier native

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    SHREVEPORT, LA (KTBS ) — Kasi Patten was pulled over for speeding by a Robeline police officer in 2017. She was a student at nearby Northwestern State University at the time and driving her brother’s vehicle.

“Unbeknownst to me, my tires on my car were not calibrated to my speedometer. Therefore, I think I was going about 8 to 10 miles over the speed limit and what my speedometer was reading,” Patten said.

She was issued a speeding ticket, which she said she’s tried to pay multiple times over the year on Robeline’s website.

Each time Patten tries, the website displays a screen that says her ticket cannot be found in the system.

“My dad was a cop for a long time, and so I believe in doing the right thing,” Patten said. “And it’s very frustrating when you try to do the right thing and you can’t.”

In February, Patten received a notice that her license was suspended because of the outstanding ticket. Months later, she was informed that the ticket had been turned over to a collection agency and that it would negatively impact her credit.

Patten, who now lives more than two hours away in east Texas, said she’s tried to remedy the situation, with no success.

“I’ve called once or twice a week to the village, to no answer. And I even sent a letter in the mail to the mayor himself, asking for help. I’ve looked on the internet to see who to get in contact with, I’ve messaged people on Facebook,” Patten said. “I’ve even called to the DMV office in Baton Rouge and there’s nothing that they can do about it, either. They have no access to their systems for paying tickets or anything like that. So I’m not real sure what to do from here.”

In the meantime, Patten carpools and uses ride sharing services to get to her job as a Pilates instructor.

3-Investigates called Robeline Village Hall. A woman who answered the phone said that Patten’s name was misspelled on the speeding ticket, which is why it wasn’t coming up on the website.

Patten said she’d heard that before, but the conversation never progressed beyond that point. The woman on the phone connected 3-Investigates to Mayor Bobby Behan, who found the ticket. The mayor revealed that he was the one responsible for the typo.

“I am the one that entered this ticket,” Behan said. “P-U-T-T-E-N is what I put in, so I did boo-boo when I put in the computer, because the a looks like a ‘U’ on the original ticket.”

Behan took accountability for the error, agreeing to send a letter to the Office of Motor Vehicles requesting to remove the ticket from Patten’s driving record, remove the bad mark from her credit and waive late fees. He gave her his direct contact information and instructions on how she can pay the ticket.

Patten is still responsible for paying the original fine.

“I’m happy with the outcome,” Patten said.

The Village of Robeline launched its online traffic ticket payment option in 2012 after a legislative audit found more than $480,000 in uncollected fines under the administration of a previous mayor.

Behan said he is unaware of any technical issues with the website.

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