'People hate carpool cheaters:' CHP tickets driver for riding with mannequin in Santa Rosa

SANTA ROSA, Calif. (KTVU) - The California Highway Patrol didn’t mince words in its Facebook post: “People hate carpool cheaters,” the agency said. “We get calls every day complaining about them, and we catch them every day.”

On Friday, Motor Officer Ken Enger spotted this “young lady” wearing a thick black sweatshirt with a skull and crossbones on it in the passenger seat of a carpool driver about 5 p.m. Enger, a “trained observer of human nature and fashion, concluded it was far too warm for such a thick hoodie. He called shenanigans, made a stop, and took the appropriate enforcement action.”

The Santa Rosa Press Democrat reported that the driver told the officer he had a long commute from Lake County to Novato. But Enger would have none of it. He gave the driver a ticket, the paper reported, which carries a minimum fine of $491.