3 years later, ticket-fixing case that stung New York Police Department reaches trial

A ticket-fixing case that stung the New York Police Department three years ago has finally reached trial.

A Bronx judge heard testimony Friday against Jennara Cobb, a lieutenant in the internal affairs bureau.

She denies charges she warned another lieutenant and a police union representative about the internal corruption probe in 2010.

Prosecutors say word then quickly spread, and union delegates started to alter the way they fixed tickets, compromising the investigation.

The case against more than a dozen officers was announced in October 2011.

It sparked a debate over the informal practice of police squashing tickets or minor summonses as favors for friends and relatives.

Prosecutors portrayed it as a pervasive form of corruption. Union leaders contended it was a harmless, time-honored courtesy that never involved bribery.