It's a part of folklore in many cities -- that police have to issue a certain number of tickets.
In New York City, the police department has always denied any such thing as ticket quotas.
However, the New York Post reported Monday that two city police sergeants have testified they were ordered to meet a quota. The testimony came during a closed door grievance hearing.
Sources told the newspaper that one sergeant even produced a memo from a commander spelling out just how many traffic summonses and quality-of-life tickets they needed to give out to avoid getting a poor performance review.
The precinct's commanding officer, Deputy Chief Michael Marino, admitted at the hearing that he wrote the note but said it was only one of several types of criteria that he used to assess his officers, the newspaper said, citing unidentified sources.
The city's Police Benevolent Association has complained that forcing officers to meet a quota forces them to write tickets for ridiculous reasons.
"The evidence presented under oath in this arbitration proves once again what police officers have long lived with: There are established quotas, and if you don't meet them, you will be punished," the PBA's President Patrick Lynch said in a statement.