After Councilman Dan Halloran apparently caught Traffic Agent Daniel Chu running red lights while talking on his cell phone, more people continue to pour forward with reports of Chu's awful behavior while on duty, which has earned him the nickname "Big Bad Dan." Halloran told WCBS, "It seems like this guy is a one man wrecking crew in my district. And yet this officer is still on duty. This traffic agent is still out there doing what he does. The horror stories just keep coming in." Granted, Halloran may have a bit of a bias.
One family already complained of Chu's cursing and yelling at them while they were attending a funeral, and now more say he finds unfair ways to write tickets. One man said Chu blocked his parked car in a parking lot and waited for the meter to run out to issue him a ticket, and others say that's a frequent offense. Former NYPD cop Anthony Carollo said, "Just to run in front of a vehicle that's about to pull out of a metered spot and use his body as a shield to stop cars and then can write the summons, that's very problematic."
Many also complain that Chu is unnecessarily abusive, and Business owner Vince Paladino has filed a complaint against Chu for harassing his customers. Though Halloran has demanded a review into every ticket Chu has ever issued, the NYPD still says the ticket he issued Halloran is completely valid. Chu also issued a ticket to City Council staffer Dennis Ring on June 5th in front of the same Dunkin' Donuts where his confrontation with Halloran took place. The ticket's license plate number didn't match the City Council placard in the window, but Chu said Ring argued the ticket should be dropped because he worked for a councilman. Also, only Council members are apparently supposed to have the placards.
