Atlanta Man Handcuffed, Issued Citation For Selling Subway Token

ATLANTA (AP) -- Transit police handcuffed and issued a citation to a man who they said sold a $1.75 subway token to another man having trouble with a token machine.
An officer spotted Donald Pirone, 42, selling the token on Nov. 30 inside the West End subway station. Following a 1992 state law that prohibits passengers from selling tokens, the officer handcuffed Pirone and gave him a citation,
But Pirone said he was just trying to help a fellow passenger out.

"I gave him a token and, I guess out of his generosity, he gave me the money for it," Pirone told WSB Radio. "But I didn't ask him for money."

Baker acknowledged that no profit was made. But she said the law is the law.

"There are customer service phones for people who are having trouble getting tokens out of the machine," Baker said. "What you've got to keep in mind is that fare abuse is a chronic problem. It costs MARTA millions of dollars every year."

The officer could have only given Pirone a warning. But the officer "acted within the law," even when using handcuffs on Pirone, she said. Baker could not immediately say how long Pirone was in handcuffs.

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