Turkeys for Tickets: For 100 lucky motorists, getting pulled over by a Sheriff’s Deputy turned out to be a good thing
Published 3:16 am Wednesday, November 22, 2023
Sheriff Tony Mancuso (center), Caran Shahenn (center right) and CPSO deputies get ready to load CPSO units with frozen turkeys to be handed out at routine traffic stops. (Emily Burleigh / American Press)
Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies gathered Tuesday morning to load up their vehicles with frozen turkeys to hand out to 100 Calcasieu Parish citizens. For the 11th year in a row, CPSO kicked off the holiday season by handing out frozen turkeys instead of writing tickets for minor traffic violations.
“Our deputies go out, and we’re going to actually stop people for violations throughout the community but instead of giving tickets, we’re giving turkeys today,” said CPSO Sheriff Tony Mancuso.
He said that Turkeys for Tickets Day is a fun, annual Thanksgiving tradition at the sheriff’s office.
“This is something that we started a few years ago, and we enjoy it. … “The deputies, they enjoy it, the fact that they don’t have to write a ticket. They can at least do their job, but give something back to our community.”
Through the years, CPSO deputies have provided civilians moments of holiday joy, and relief, after being pulled over.
“It’s a way to lighten the load. It’s the holiday season, we don’t want people to have to pay a fine and get in trouble, but we also want them to slow down and think about the consequences of driving too fast or running a red light or rolling through a stop sign.”
This is not a way to reward people for breaking the law, but instead a moment to teach with kindness, he said.
“Nobody likes tickets, but it also gets our point across that ‘Hey, you need to slow down. … We’ve still got to enforce the laws here in our community, it’s just a light-hearted way to not give tickets, and not cost them any money.”
The turkeys were provided by the family of Caran Shaheen. She and her husband that own Five Star Quick Shop in Moss Bluff, and her daughters Emmalee Shaheen and Kelle Powell that own Epic Health, sponsor the event each year.
They started giving away turkeys through a drawing at their store before reaching out to CPSO.
“I just wanted to reach out to bigger areas, so I called Tony and asked him, ‘Hey, can we do that?”
The rest is history, and they have now worked with CPSO for six years to hand out the turkeys.
“You touch so many people like that. … I’ve been so blessed, I just want to pay it forward.”
