Deputy not fooled by carpool mannequin

ISLANDIA, N.Y., Feb. 4 (UPI) -- Deputies in New York's Suffolk County said a woman was ticketed for driving in a carpool lane alone with a mannequin disguised as a passenger.

Mike Sharkey, Suffolk County Sheriff's Office chief of staff, said Deputy Robert Howard was driving Tuesday on the Long Island Expressway in Islandia when he grew suspicious of a car in the high-occupancy vehicle lane because the passenger was wearing a visor and sunglasses despite the cloudy weather, Newsday reported Thursday.

Sharkey said Howard pulled over Kathleen Frascinella, 61, of Mount Sinai, N.Y., and discovered her only passenger was a mannequin dressed in clothing including a blazer and a scarf.

Frascinella was issued a $135 citation for operating a vehicle in the HOV lane without a passenger.

"At first glance, this may seem humorous, but it is not a joking matter when you drive off with a ticket," Sheriff Vincent DeMarco said.