In a close imitation of former Hamilton alderman Tom Murray's traffic miscue, Mr. Mitchell was recently stopped on the Jolly Cut while on his way to city hall by a Hamilton Police officer.
The rural councillor was clocked, apparently, going 80 kilometres in a 50 km zone on his Harley.
Mr. Mitchell, who suffered through a horrific motorcycle accident more than a year ago, was a bit perturbed, he says, because he was doing the same speed as everybody else was doing at 11 a.m down the hill.
The rural councillor, whose sister is a Hamilton Police officer, started joking with the unnamed officer, he says, exchanging family histories. He characterized the banter as a "good discussion" with the officer. He says he jokingly identified himself as a Hamilton councillor, "not that it means anything."
But then he caught the officer writing a ticket for 30 kms over the speed limit, resulting in a $145 fine. He asked why not "knock" it down into the twenties. The officer refused, said Mr. Mitchell, saying it wasn't his policy.
Upset, Mr. Mitchell compounded his error by, as he says, making a "critical generic big picture statement about the police department."
Other people have stated Mr. Mitchell referred to the Hamilton Police Services as "corrupt."
